Jelmer Steenhuis

Who is Jelmer Steenhuis?

Jelmer Jan Steenhuis is a Dutch creator of puzzles and games. Steenhuis is best known for his weekly puzzles in the newspaper NRC Handelsblad and magazine Vrij Nederland.

Jelmer Steenhuis used to be a lawyer, an occupation he gradually started to combine with the design of puzzles. From 1987 he was responsible for the cryptic crossword in NRC Handelsblad, the so-called Scrypto, a renowned puzzle that until then was compiled by Henk Scheltes. Later on, from 1990, Steenhuis also started to compile a weekly variety puzzle in the Vrij Nederland, loosely based on similar puzzles in American periodicals.

In 1997 Steenhuis decided to concentrate exclusively on the compiling of puzzles as a profession, resulting in his own business start-up Studio Steenhuis. Studio Steenhuis provides, in addition to the mentioned-above, many other puzzles and games, including the daily newspuzzle In Het Midden in nrc.next and the picture puzzle Gezocht in NRC Handelsblad. Also in magazines such as Safe, the sponsored magazine from the asset management firm Robeco, and Resource, the student magazine at the University of Wageningen, one can find puzzles of Studio Steenhuis.