Cephaloclastophile: what if it were you?

You probably know someone who loves jigsaw puzzles. Maybe it's even you, without realizing it... Their passion? Sorting, searching, assembling, solving. For these true enthusiasts, every piece , every edge is a promise, every corner a victory. Are they puzzle pros? Not necessarily. Just enthusiasts who love putting the pieces in their place, dreaming a little, and savoring the passing of time.

💡Cephaloclastophile: definition!

But where does this bizarre word come from? Let's put ourselves in the shoes of the great scholars for a moment: the term cephaloclastophile comes from the Greek kephalê (head), klastós (broken) and philos (friend, lover). Simply put, a cephaloclastophile is someone who loves and collects puzzles, and more broadly, puzzle fans.

It's a word that gets thrown around a lot, but surprisingly hasn't yet made it into the dictionary (unlike carabistouille, for example). And yet, there are legions of cephaloclastophiles out there, in families or solo, their eyes riveted on their 500 or 10,000 pieces... A real community, very discreet, not necessarily seeking glory at the jigsaw world championships.

🛋 But where are they hiding?

Cephaloclastophiles are everywhere! They can be found around a coffee table, cross-legged on a carpet, or spread out on the floor. Some are easy to spot, even framing the completed puzzle. But many still work in the shadows, for the reputation of this puzzle game is hard to shake...

Puzzles are old-fashioned? Did you really say "old-fashioned"? That's because you haven't seen the Jour Férié collectionyet! It's high time to put the pieces back where they belong!

Once synonymous with kitschy imagery (hello, kittens in flower baskets), this activity was confined to rainy Sundays and retirement homes. But today, puzzles have had a bit of a makeover, and if you took a peek through the keyhole at many of your friends' homes, you might be surprised.

🧩 Why do we become cephaloclastophiles?

There's no such thing as a typical profile! Cephaloclastophilia affects us all. Some have cultivated this passion since childhood, while others discovered it late in life. Particularly at the time of the 2020 pandemic, the period that marked the puzzle's great comeback.

Sure enough, after binge-watching the entirety of Netflix, flipping through 3,000 gratin recipes 17 times, trying to learn Chinese in 22 days and following tutorials to learn how to play the pan flute, what was left? Spring cleaning had been done, redone... and anticipated for the next three years...

All that remained was to settle down, of course! Take your time, reconnect with yourself, with others, with shapes and colors. And that's how we rediscovered the benefits of jigsaw pu zzles and got hooked.

🔍 Signs that you belong to the club

There are certain signs that can tell you whether or not you belong to the very secret club of cephaloclastophiles:

• You can spend two hours looking for thepiece among 300 other blue coins.
  
  
• You always sort the edges first. ALWAYS.
  
  
• You feel intense joy when fitting a piece into place.
  
  
• You like the silence of the parts when they fit together(ASMR house).
  
  
• You often tell yourself that this is the last piece fit piece for today, but you repeat this at least 10 times.
  
  
• You own a puzzle mat (you're definitely part of the club) or you're thinking of buying one (you're ready to join).

🌍 Puzzles that respect your values

At Jour Férié, we come across some serious puzzle lovers. You can spot them because they often order a lot of puzzles. So, to protect our beloved planet, our puzzles are carefully designed and built to last, giving you lots of moments of calm and reconnection:

• 🖼️ Original, poetic illustrations by Céline, our in-house illustrator;
  
  
• 🇫🇷 Made 100% in France;
  
  
• 🌱 Eco-responsible materials: recycled and recyclable, plastic-free ;
  
  
• ♻️ Boxes without over-wrapping, adapted to the number of pieces;
  
  
• 🧩 High-quality pieces for puzzling and re-puzzling, and re-puzzling again...
  

So, are you a puzzle enthusiast too? No, not yet? What if, deep down, all you really need is to slow down a little, take the time to breathe, observe, dream... Because that's the magic of puzzles: active meditation, a moment suspended in time, a bubble of slow living  where calm is built piece by piece. If you don't know where to start, our 500-piece puzzles could be a great place to begin.

👉 Read also: The cooperative puzzle, a hobby that brings people together