Sunday January 25, 2026 Priyanka Sethy & Rajiv Sethy

 Theme: "DARN IT ALL" - Six different kinds of stitches bookend each theme entry. 

23. *Result of turning over a new leaf: BLANK SHEET. Blanket.

33. *Staple of mid-century campus style: BASEBALL JACKET. Basket.

51. *Composure metaphor in a P.G. Wodehouse title: STIFF UPPER LIP. Slip.

69. *Royal who's next in line: CROWN PRINCESS. Cross.

90. *Circle of care: SUPPORT SYSTEM. Stem.

105. *Silent film legend in a bowler hat: CHARLIE CHAPLIN. Chain.

Reveal:

120. Laughing hysterically, or what the answers to the starred clues literally are: IN STITCHES.

Priyanka Sethy and Rajiv Sethy are a daughter-father construction team who have published puzzles in several outlets. This is their Los Angeles Times debut. Congratulations to both!

I often see complaints about circles in crossword grids, and I've never quite understood them. You aren't  asked to draw the circles. You're simply being asked to notice them. Circles are an important tool for constructors. They allow for original theme ideas like today's, and, in some cases, help create visual elements that couldn't otherwise be shown.

If you can spot the theme without the circles, great. But many solvers rely on them to see what's going on.

Across:

1. Aries animals: RAMS.

5. WWII sub: U BOAT. U stands for undersea.

10. Toiling away: AT IT.

14. Swanky events: GALAS.

19. "Planet of the __": APES.

20. River that crosses the equator twice: CONGO. I always love trivia clues.

21. Extinct Mauritian bird: DODO.

22. Japanese 65-Across: UNAGI. 65. Fish in East London pie shops: EELS. I could eat this every day.

25. Onion relative: LEEK. More food: 29. Kebab bread: PITA. 64. Soba alternative: UDON. And 68. Tuna variety: AHI.

26. Geography text: ATLAS.

27. Fen: BOG.

28. Pop star: IDOL.

30. Routing word: VIA.

31. "That is to say ... ": I MEAN.

40. Harness part: BRIDLE.

43. School staff org.: NEA. The National Education Association. Also 45. Government org. with a flower logo: EPA.

44. Entreaties: PLEAS.

46. Cattle chorus: MOOS.

47. Guise: GARB. I associate "Guise" with "false front". Not GARB.

49. "__ queen!": YAS.

50. Grand __: PRIX.

56. Future JD's major, maybe: POLI SCI. Political science. 78. Future MBA's major, maybe: ECON.

58. Wine-y prefix: OENO.

59. Go-getters: DOERS.

60. Fastidious sort: NEATNIK.

62. "Killers of the Flower Moon" director: SCORSESE.

74. Consume: EAT.

76. Speak unclearly: SLUR.

79. Rosary unit: HAIL MARY. I can recite this and the Lord's Prayer. 

81. Too much of a good thing: SURFEIT.

84. Fungus propagator: SPORE.

86. Quelques-___: some, in French: UNES.

87. Soap with a bird imprint: DOVE BAR.

93. Bygone Apple player: IPOD.

94. Static cling particle: ION.

96. Status of a Microsoft Teams message: SEEN.

97. French possessive: A TOI.

98. Cul-de-__: SAC.

99. "No more for me!": I'M SET.

101. Appeal of texting?: PLZ. Please. 

102. Tacky: GAUCHE.

109. Chuckle: LAUGH.

111. Abbreviation before stating a new fact: TIL. Today I Learned.

112. Nut in early Coke recipes: KOLA.

113. Dutch cheese?: EURO. Dutch currency.

116. Mexican Mrs.: SRA.

117. __ donna: PRIMA.

119. PC key: CTRL.

123. Slender woodwinds: OBOES.

124. Parting word: CIAO.

125. Source of dust allergies: MITES.

126. Green action: PUTT. Golf green. 

127. Belarus capital: MINSK.

128. Hot: SEXY. And 129. Not hot: PASSE.

130. Abbey space: APSE.

Down:

1. Jewish leader: RABBI. Funny!

2. Poise under pressure: APLOMB.

3. Scant: MEAGER.

4. Target of ID thieves: SSN.

5. La Jolla sch.: UCSD. UC San Diego.

6. Flower child style: BOHO.

7. Roughly half a kg: ONE LB.

8. Get old: AGE.

9. Tyke: TOT.

10. Improvise: AD LIB.

11. Movement in a core-strengthening Pilates exercise: TOE TAP. Toe taps the ground.

12. In a perfect world: IDEALLY.

13. Tik follower: TOK.

14. Pink-fleshed tropical fruits: GUAVAS.

15. Caper: ANTIC.

16. Kobe Bryant's team: LA LAKERS.

17. Ottoman title: AGA.

18. Part of the fam: SIS.

24. "Ish": KIND OF.

29. Oyster gem: PEARL.

32. Work toward: AIM FOR.

34. Make mad: ANGER.

35. Old name on Chicago's Willis Tower: SEARS.

36. Hopped: LEAPT.

37. Actor Momoa: JASON.  The Aquaman.

38. The Mahabharata, for one: EPIC. The other is Ramayana.

39. Summoned ride: TAXI.

41. "For those in the back!": LOUDER.

42. Spanish partner: ESPOSO.

48. Adornment below a maang tikka, perhaps: BINDI. Maang tikka is traditional headpiece for Indian brides.

50. __ Place: Starbucks blend: PIKE.

51. Sammy who hit 609 homers: SOSA. And 54. Dodger great Reese: PEEWEE.

52. Lab assts.: TECHS.

53. How samosas are fried: IN OIL.

55. Laborer: PEON.

57. Eldest von Trapp daughter: LIESL.

61. Sailor's tattoo, perhaps: ANCHOR.

63. Use elbow grease: SCRUB.

64. Catering container: URN.

66. Inclined, to a Brit: LEANT.

67. South Asian dress: SAREE.

70. CBS procedural set in D.C.: NCIS.

71. Article II subj.: POTUS. Article II established the Executive Branch.

72. Livestock tracker: EAR TAG.

73. Afternoon nap: SIESTA.

75. Texter's show of gratitude: TYSM. Thank You So Much. 

77. Like preloved items: USED.

80. Reguetón, e.g.: MUSICA. Reggaeton/Music.

82. "Spider-Man" filmmaker: RAIMI (Sam) I often confuse him with Sam Mendes, who directed "Skyfall".

83. Icy wine drink: FROSE.

84. Mage's cast: SPELL.

85. __ scheme: PONZI.

87. Hockey puck, e.g.: DISC.

88. Moonfish: OPAH.

89. Calling: VOCATION.

91. Cartoon pig with a British accent: PEPPA.

92. British collective: YOU LOT.  Their "Y'all" 

95. Part of some school uniforms: NECKTIE.

99. "Let me find out": I'LL ASK. Such a big comfort to have TTP back. 

100. Middle of an ant: THORAX.

103. "Zip it": HUSH UP.

104. National Audubon Society symbols: EGRETS.

106. Country star LeAnn: RIMES.

107. Metallic mixture: ALLOY.

108. Gets comfortable: NESTS.

110. Eagerness to act: HASTE.

114. Salt Lake City athletes: UTES. The Utah Utes.

115. "__ and shine!": RISE.

117. Fluffy dog, familiarly: POM.

118. Slugger's stat: RBI.

119. Includes on an email: CCS.

120. Troublemaker: IMP.

121. "The Marvels" director DaCosta: NIA. The first Black woman to direct a Marvel film.

122. IRS form expert: CPA.

C.C.

Saturday, January 24, 2026, Rafael Musa, Geoffrey Schorkopf

  Themeless Saturday by Rafael Musa & Geoffrey Schorkopf 

I had these collaborators on September 6, 2025 and had much more luck with that puzzle than I did with this one. I had to get help on a few cells and had an honest-to-goodness Natick at IRE_A/A_AND. The cluing left me out in the dark and some of the fill were not in my vocabulary. All in all it was a slog for this solver and came in the "close but no cigar" category.

As the graphic shows, Rafael (A software engineer for Airbnb in S.F.)  and Geoffrey (a software engineer at Fastly in Atlanta) had a lot of unique fill. The gentlemen had 104 open squares and only 28 blocks.

Rafael

Geoffrey

 

Across:

1. Emerge from the ashes, say: RISE AGAIN - Until last year, Indiana Unverstiy's football team had more losses (over 700) than another college program. But with the hire of coach Curt Cignetti they went to 16 - 0 and won the National Championship in 2026.

10. Violin stroke: UPBOW - We guitar players often use an upstrum stroke

15. Mammal with a protective shell: ARMADILLO - This easy 9-letter fill portended an easier solve than it turned out to be

16. Letizia, por ejemplo: REINA - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I didn't even know Spain had a King and Queen and no idea what the Spanish word for a queen was either.

17. Drafty places?: BEER HALLS 😀 Perhaps the most famous BEER HALL was the  Löwenbrau's Bürgerbräukeller in Munich where in 1923 Hitler attempted his famous putsch to oust the Weimar Republic.

18. 17-Across option: LAGER - Löwenbrau certainly made a LAGER beer even then

19. "Winners Take All" author Giridharadas: ANAND ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  and 2. Polish humanitarian Sendler: IRENA ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  The makings of my Natick.

     

20. Wife of Osiris: ISIS.

22. Drooping: LIMP.

23. Sea dogs: TARS.

24. Caterpillar counterparts: DEERES - This John DEERE starts at $1.2M before options

26. Dandy: FOP.

27. Following a pattern, perhaps: ORDERLY.

28. "Sorry, did I overshare?": TMI.

29. End one's Dry January, say: IMBIBE.

33. Rational process?: MEAL PREP - Rational meal prep combines smart planning (stocking up, mapping meals, focusing on protein/leftovers) with efficient cooking, often using technology.

35. Demeanors: MIENS - I see MIEN and its lovely vowels here more often than anywhere else

36. Potential reward for a top-seeded team: BYE - The top four rated teams get a BYE in the first round of the College Football Playoffs. In the last two years those teams with a week off have  a 1 - 7 record.

37. Danish fruit: PRUNE 😀 - That is only one filling option for the pastry known as a danish. They are so named because Danish bakers brought them to America. In Denmark they were known as wienerbrød (Vienna Bread).

 

38. They may trick or treat?: PLACEBOS 😀

40. Excel at another company?: SHEETS 😀

41. Guitar legend Paul: LES.

42. Tangy ramen toppers: SOY EGGS ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

44. NYC setting: EST.

45. Fill a flat?: SUBLET - 😀 I abandoned any use of the word air quickly 

46. The "A" of NATO: ALFA - Putting AMER first did not help. Once I changed that mistake the whole SE corner filled in.

50. Note givers: ATMS.

52. First U.S. president to own a car: TAFT -The 1909 Model M is at the Heritage Museums & Gardens in Sandwich, Massachusetts.

 

53. Clear as day: PLAIN.

54. Like a flue: SOOTY.

56. "I'm dead serious!": NO FOOLING.

58. Over: ENDED.

59. Parts in two?: DUAL ROLES - I had a huge crush on Haley Mills in her DUAL ROLES in 1961

60. Considers: DEEMS.

61. Works outside?: STREET ART - Works is a noun here. ART came first in the fill for me.

Down:

1. North African capital: RABAT - Casablanca was the movie but RABAT is the capital of Morocco. Anyone else put Cairo first?

3. Bad mark: SMEAR.

4. Brings in: EARNS.

5. Med. condition treated with Vyvanse: ADHD.

6. "The Last Showgirl" director Coppola: GIA ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

7. Together: ALLIED.

8. Comment after a bad joke: I'LL SEE MYSELF OUT 😀

9. Folksy denial: NO SIRREE.

10. Short address: URL.

11. Toll: PEAL 😀

12. "That would break the internet!": BIG IF TRUE 😀 If Abe had really said this...

13. "Be right with you": ONE MOMENT.

14. Mario Bros. transports: WARP PIPES ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

21. Ward in movies: SELA - How old am I? I put Ward BOND first.

24. Beats by __: DRE

 

25. Spirits of the air: SYLPHS.

27. Go deep, say: OBSESS.

29. "That makes me happy": I'M PLEASED.

30. Solid foods for a baby, e.g.: MILESTONE - The "potty trained" MILESTONE is monumental!

31. Competitive athletic state, colloquially: BEAST MODE - We had this a few Saturdays ago.

32. Business end?: INC.

34. School opening?: PRE.

36. Focus of the 2024 miniseries "Dirty Pop": BOY BANDS ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

39. Spell: BOUT - I had a 10-day BOUT with a cold around Christmas 

40. Mil. rank: SGT - I had to muster out CPL, CAP and COL

43. Win at life: GET FAR.

46. Divvy up: ALLOT - The end of every family get together is the "divvy up" session for leftovers

47. Boxer Ali: LAILA - Here with dad.

48. Less coarse: FINER.

49. Inner turmoil: ANGST.

51. Academic acronym: STEM.

53. Toner target: PORE.

55. Passing concern, for short?: YDS - I, uh, passed on INT and TDS

57. Estádio do Maracanã cheer: OLE - The Estádio do Maracanã stadium is in Rio and OLE celebrates soccer goals rather than bull fighting success.