We also have an informal puzzle exchange here in Thomaston, that grew pretty organically on its own. We had a few puzzles that someone had donated years ago that were just stacked on top of some of our bookshelves, and people asked if we lent them out. We said no a couple of times because we had no formal system for lending them and had no desire to catalog them, but soon realized that was a little silly since they had been donations in the first place and were at the time just gathering dust. Then people offered to bring in the puzzles they had finished in exchange for our puzzles, and our puzzle swap was born. To date, we've had far more puzzles donated than have not returned. We let people know we don't check them for missing pieces, but sometimes someone borrowing a puzzle will write notes on the box if they know a piece is missing or if they confirmed that all the pieces are there and the date, which is great.

We also have a community puzzle table now and have added some shelves above it for the puzzle swap.

Kelcy, I suspect if you put out a call in your community for puzzle donations, you'll end up with more than you'll know what to do with!


Caroline Ward-Nesbit

Head Librarian

Thomaston Public Library

60 Main St.

Thomaston, ME 04861

(207) 354-2453

www.thomaston.lib.me.us<http://www.thomaston.lib.me.us>

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Pronouns: she/her



Please consider the environment before printing this email.

________________________________
From: Maine Libraries Discussion List <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of Hazel Onsrud <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, March 13, 2023 12:57 PM
To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: [MELIBS-L] Puzzle Rentals

We lend puzzles at CML. They are a legacy LOT item<https://curtislibrary.com/library-of-things/>, so they are all on 1 bib record. We get rid of ones that have reported missing pieces and we do not circulate all of the ones that are donated to us. We use silicone bands<https://www.amazon.com/Silicone-Wrapping-Exercise-Chemical-Resistant/dp/B07WRX35ZG/ref=sr_1_4_sspa?keywords=silicone+bands&qid=1678726428&sr=8-4-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzMUVYOFFaWVRSRVpFJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUExMDMzMzA3UjlBVkw2TkJSMFpSJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA1NTQzNzUxWExLRENTNzM1RFIyJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==> to keep some together. We have used these bags<https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08FRDBGNW/ref=sspa_dk_detail_3?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B08FRDBGNW&pd_rd_w=eJgzr&content-id=amzn1.sym.dd2c6db7-6626-466d-bf04-9570e69a7df0&pf_rd_p=dd2c6db7-6626-466d-bf04-9570e69a7df0&pf_rd_r=H08DJKK822EYBSYSNZDY&pd_rd_wg=w9GCH&pd_rd_r=03924d9e-8a46-42de-b3e5-18c3425d1259&s=office-products&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWxfdGhlbWF0aWM&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExVURRREU5MDNFOVA2JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNTg3NDczTVkxRENUTTFVMklXJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAzNzE0MDVDUE1aUk9aTDkxMFUmd2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWxfdGhlbWF0aWMmYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl> and hangers for other items in our LOT (see details here<https://vimeo.com/711786484>, and more videos about LOT FAQs, etc, can be seen at the bottom of our LOT page)  but not our puzzles.
[https://i.vimeocdn.com/filter/overlay?src0=https%3A%2F%2Fi.vimeocdn.com%2Fvideo%2F1435181473-8377171b1266a537dc783a41080ae41301fe1cf5d1586b40fb0fefa9568a33a4-d_1280x720&src1=https%3A%2F%2Ff.vimeocdn.com%2Fimages_v6%2Fshare%2Fplay_icon_overlay.png]<https://vimeo.com/711786484>
How to Create & Run a Library of Things: A Case Study from a Maine Public Library<https://vimeo.com/711786484>
Check out our Library of Things and links to other related videos here: https://curtislibrary.com/library-of-things/
vimeo.com




Hazel Onsrud  | Ms./Mx./she/her/they/them |  Adult Services Librarian

Curtis Memorial Library<https://curtislibrary.com/>  |  The public library in Brunswick, Maine<https://native-land.ca/maps/territories/wabanaki-confederacy/> & a Climate Resilience Hub<https://www.climatecrew.org/resilience_hubs?locale=en>

207.725.5242 ext. 228 | [log in to unmask]

Check out our Library of Things<https://curtislibrary.com/adults/library-of-things/> and ask us how we're working to support the Sustainable Development Goals<https://librarymap.ifla.org/>.

Yes, we're part of the Sustainable Libraries Initiative<https://sustainablelibrariesinitiative.org/> and have submitted our story to the IFLA Map<https://librarymap.ifla.org/>. Join us!

________________________________
From: Maine Libraries Discussion List <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of Nissa Flanagan <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, March 10, 2023 3:47 PM
To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: [MELIBS-L] Puzzle Rentals

We also lend puzzles by honor system - we just call it a puzzle swap.  We
do get gallon size bags to contain all the pieces and avoid spills, but we
just stack the boxes on a shelf and call it a puzzle swap.  People take
them out,  drop them off, and are under no obligation to return them.  We
do however get lots of donations for the swap - if you need puzzles, we are
drowning in them.  I don't think we've ever bought a puzzle, but we do have
lots and lots of really nice ones.

Curating the puzzle selection is one of our volunteer projects - we have a
volunteer group that checks all the returned puzzles for bags, sets aside
seasonal puzzles that are out of season, removes puzzles where people have
noted missing pieces, and then makes sure the puzzle shelf looks tidy and
inviting.

Best,
Nissa

On Fri, Mar 10, 2023 at 2:49 PM Jason Fenimore <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> we have hundreds of boxes of puzzles--we go by the honor system--there
> is still a little honor out there. (i.e. patron just takes the box--no
> check out--brings it back)
> We also do a puzzle exchange once a month--pretty popular AS LONG AS you
> advertise it well.
> 30 minutes on a Saturday--but, whatever works for you.
>
>
> Jason Fenimore
> Reference Librarian
> Louis B. Goodall Memorial Library
> 952 Main St.
> Sanford, ME  04073
>
> we are EXPANDING...
> www.lbgoodall.org<http://www.lbgoodall.org>
>
>
> https://tinyurl.com/39ckfw5b
>
> On 3/10/2023 2:01 PM, Kelcy Boles wrote:
> > Good afternoon all
> >
> > I am looking at being able to lend out puzzles at our library. I’ve seen
> the hanging bag options on Demco but was wondering if others had different,
> cheaper options for how to display and lend out puzzles.
> >
> > Thank you for your help and guidance
> >
> > Kelcy Boles
> > Sent from my iPhone
>


--
Nissa Flanagan
Deputy Director
Baxter Memorial Library
Town of Gorham
71 South Street
Gorham, ME 04038

Telephone (207) 222-1190
FAX (207) 839-7749

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