Brain teasers and puzzles for adults are one of the best activities to keep your brain focused and provide hours of enjoyment.

While many of us first experience puzzles and brain teasers at a young age, by no means do we need to end our fascination with them when we become adults.

Whether you are a collector, enthusiast, enjoy the challenge, use them as brain exercises, or a combination wood puzzles are a wonderful activity for adults.

Now the question becomes: which puzzles are best for me? Or, if you are purchasing one as a gift: which wood brain teasers are best for my mom, dad, sibling, grandparents, etc...

Let's try and figure that out using the the 4 categories I previously mentioned.

Puzzle Collector

Serious puzzle collectors are also known as metragrobologists. 

Metragrobologists as defined by Dave Holt at TheMetragrobologist.com:

"is a popular term used to describe the study of puzzles. A metagrobologist is deemed to be a serious designers/craftsman, practitioner, collector or puzzle enthusiast who collects and attempts to solve any number of classified mechanical puzzles."

These are generally individuals who have many common puzzles such as various Tangrams, Soma Cube, Star Cube, or Snake Puzzle. Try to avoid these and do a google search for common puzzles. While not fool proof this will help you avoid a multitude of puzzles if you plan on giving them as a gift to a friend or family member.

Instead focus on puzzles which are not as common such as:

• A Japanese Puzzle Box
• Calibron 12 Wood Puzzle
• Stomachion - The World's Oldest Puzzle
• Cannonball Pyramid 5x5x5 by Mike Rielly

Puzzle Enthusiast

Puzzle enthusiasts is a fancy way of describing a puzzle lover. They may not have an extensive collection, but will go out of their way to sit down and try to solve an brain teaser they can get their hands on.

I think most of us know at least one person who fits in to this category. Personally I have a few friends from high school who I send a few puzzles to every Christmas. They always love letting me know how long it took to solve or if I sent them an "impossible puzzle."

A few go to puzzles are:

• Safecracker 50 Math Puzzle
• Ramube Octahedron
• Shipper's Dilemma Y
• Martin's Menace Five Piece Puzzle

Do You Enjoy the Challenge?

First I want to clarify what I mean here when I use the term challenge. I am not necessarily referring to only the hardest puzzles. More that the process of solving a puzzles provides a sense of satisfaction. The puzzle can take 5 minutes or 5 months.

The process of thinking through the steps and arriving at the solution provides the enjoyment. I like to think of these as coffee table style puzzles. The type of brain teaser you leave out in a common area for both yourself and guests to enjoy.

Here are a couple examples:

• The Cruiser 4 Piece Puzzle
• Twist and Shout Puzzle
• Perfect 10 Edge Matching Puzzle
• Stash Box Wooden Puzzle Box

Puzzle as Brain Exercises

Puzzles are fantastic learning tools for kids helping develop and myriad a mental functions. You can read more about the positive effects of puzzles on kids over at Creative Crafthouse.

The focus here is for adults wanting to keep their brains sharp and focused. This is especially true for the elderly. Puzzles help:

• Memory Function
• Cognitive Skills
• Socialization
• Provide Sense of Accomplishment

I am going to include a couple games here that can be enjoyed by younger children and grandparents together in addition to puzzles.

• Penny Drop Family Game for All Ages
• Shut the Box
• Soma Cube
• Word Wheel

Let me know some of your favorite puzzles in the comments below. If you have any questions or need helping picking out the best puzzle gift please contact me.