Double or Nothing #4

 Double or Nothing #4 - PDF | PDF (Grayscale) | Solution (PDF)

Here's another Double or Nothing puzzle. These puzzles are always fun to create and I especially savor the opportunity to fit in entries like 25- and 42-Across. PDF only for this puzzle. Hope you enjoy!

The monthly bundles have been updated through March, so check that out if you're not already subscribing to Aries Rows Garden. Or, even better, you can subscribe to Aries Rows Garden to get a puzzle emailed to you each week.

Good luck to all competitors at the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament this weekend! And in other media, I got a quote in this recent Oregonian article on crosswords - give it a read if you're interested.

Happy solving!

Marching Bands #5

Marching Bands #5  - PDF | JPZ | Solution (PDF)

Here's this month's variety puzzle - it's another Marching Bands puzzle. There's a PDF and a JPZ file attached - to solve the JPZ, first download the file then head over to Crossword Nexus and upload the file. 

Check back next week for the February monthly bundle for Aries Rows Garden. 3/1 UPDATE: The February monthly bundle is now posted. A reminder that subscriptions are always open if you don't want to wait for the monthly bundles!

Happy solving!

Press Boxes

 Press Boxes - PDF | Solution PDF

Back with the first variety puzzle of 2023! I finally tried my hand at one of these "Boxes" puzzles - a format I've also seen under the "Packing Crates" name. To my knowledge (do correct me if I'm wrong) this is another puzzle format developed by the masterful Patrick Berry. This is one of my favorite variety formats out there to solve - particularly those in which Patrick seeds the grid with a bonus answer made from the letters not used in Boxes entries, as is the case with this puzzle, "Press Boxes." I always was a bit intimidated by the format which is why I didn't try writing one for a long time. This puzzle definitely was a challenge to write but not brain-numbingly challenging, so I hope to return to the format in the future. PDF only for this format. Hope you enjoy!

The next monthly bundle for Aries Rows Garden will be available next week - January is a five-Tuesday month so there's still another puzzle to go. 2/7 UPDATE: The January Rows Garden bundle is now available! Of course, if you don't want to wait to solve these Rows Gardens, you can always subscribe to receive them on a weekly basis, delivered straight to your inbox. 

Happy solving!

Snowflake #2

Snowflake #2 - PDF | Solution (PDF) 

Back with another Snowflake puzzle! This Hex-inspired variety puzzle is a good one to run this time of year. Instructions included in the PDF - no digital solving capabilities for this format, unfortunately. Happy solving!

Monthly bundles have been posted through December, and 2022 Second Half bundles have been added to the archive for both Aries Rows Garden and Aries Freestyle. It was bittersweet to conclude the Aries Freestyle series this week; here's to five great years of freestyle crosswords! Aries Rows Garden is still going strong however, kicking off its TENTH year next week. Subscriptions are always open so get on it if you haven't already.

Happy New Year!

-Andrew