Wrapping Up 2025: A Year Cut Piece by Piece

Bringing Wellesley to Life — Day and Night A peek behind the scenes of how a town we love became a family keepsake. We’ve always loved town of Wellesley near where we live here at Weston, MA. It’s close to home, and every corner feels familiar — from the tree-lined streets to the runners you see on a sunny afternoon or on Boston Marathon Day. So when it came time to create a new Láns puzzle, we knew exactly where to start: right in our own backyard. Capture What We Know and Love Before any artwork begins, we head out as a family with cameras (and snacks, of course). We take photos from every angle — rooftops, sidewalks, bridges, you name it. The goal isn’t just to copy what we see, but to feel it. We want to capture the small, beautiful moments that make Wellesley feel alive — the sunlight through the trees, the laughter outside the cafés, the energy of a weekend crowd. Turning Photos into Art Once we’ve gathered all those snapshots, we work with our artists to sketch out the town’s story. Together, we decide which buildings to include, which details tell the heart of Wellesley, and how to bring out its everyday magic. This is where the idea of two sides takes shape — one for the warm, bustling summer day, and the other for the peaceful, glowing winter night. Day vs. Night The day side bursts with life — marathon runners on the road, musicians playing in the park, kids chasing bubbles, and families enjoying the sunshine.  Then comes the night side — a cozy winter scene with snow-covered rooftops, skaters on the ice, the sparkle of holiday lights, and even Santa flying across a full moon. Same town, two very different moods. Making It Puzzle-Friendly A beautiful drawing isn’t always a good puzzle. So we spend time adjusting every color, shadow, and tiny detail to make sure each section is distinct and satisfying to piece together. The goal is to make every bit of the artwork not only fun to look at — but fun to find while you puzzle. Print, Test, Repeat Once we have a design we love, we turn it into a real prototype and start testing — literally at our kitchen table. Family, friends, and sometimes our kids all help. We notice which parts are too tricky, which ones come together nicely, and where we can add more joy to the experience. We go back and forth — tweak, test, and tweak again — until we have something that feels special enough to keep. A Puzzle Worth Keeping In the end, the Wellesley Day-and-Night puzzle isn’t just a game — it’s a piece of our family’s story. Designed, printed, and hand-cut here in Massachusetts, it’s meant to be something you can build together, talk over, laugh through, and treasure long after the last piece clicks into place.  A true keepsake — made by our family, for yours.