This is the Carbon version of QiYi’s Ivy Cube, the shape mod (a puzzle that changes the shape of another classic) derived from the skewb, with curved leaf-shaped pieces. Unlike the stickerless model, here each piece carries a black sticker with a carbon-fibre texture that lets the colour of the plastic show only around the outline.

• BrandQiYi
• TypeShape mod (skewb variant)
• MagnetsNo
• FinishCarbon-fibre stickers on coloured plastic

Design

The base is the brightly coloured stickerless Ivy Cube (the colour is in the plastic itself). On top of it, QiYi places black stickers with a carbon-fibre pattern that cover almost the entire surface of each piece. The result is a mostly black puzzle in which the colour of each face can be told apart by the visible edge, which gives it a more understated look and makes you pay a little more attention when solving it.

How it works

The mechanism is the same as on the standard Ivy Cube: the turning axes pass through the corners, as on a skewb, and each move rotates a corner together with part of the neighbouring faces. It has few pieces and few possible states, so it is usually solved intuitively. It has no magnets.

What level it suits

It suits anyone starting out with shape puzzles and collectors who already own the Ivy Cube and want a different finish. As with any stickered puzzle, it is best not to force the corners when turning, as they can break if twisted off their axis.