Jigsaw Puzzles Tips

As you may already know, the first thing you do when putting together a jigsaw puzzle is to go through and sort out all the flat border pieces by putting them in a separate box. As you are doing this, take several boxes from other puzzles, shoe boxes, or big paper plates and sort out the non-border pieces according to similar colors.

Keep the puzzle pieces face up, so that you can view them all as you are filling in the puzzle. For example, you may separate sky, grass, tree, and water pieces all into different containers. Doing the puzzle this way will save you a lot of time and frustration!

I recently purchased a "Puzzle Stow and Go" which works great for storing a puzzle! Before I would have to leave my puzzle out on the table for days or weeks while I finished them, which would always leave pieces of my puzzle missing. This is a perfect solution, because used correctly, you can keep your unfinished puzzle safely away from your kids or the animals.

To use correctly, I recommend ironing out every single wrinkle in the fabric. This seemed to take me a long time, but maybe because I hate to iron. For stubborn wrinkles spray them first with water, and use a high heat setting.

As you start the border keep it centered in the middle as much as possible. Then when you are ready to store the partially completed puzzle away, make sure that there are no overlapping pieces. Take the inflatable tube and be sure to start rolling it evenly on both sides, then not too tightly, just roll it up. Secure the straps and that's it.

I usually stack the boxes that I sorted the pieces out into and place everything for my puzzle up high, like in my closet or on top of the fridge for safe keeping. As you're doing the puzzle, sometimes things get very tricky. I found that when trying to finish a certain area, sometimes it's a good idea to sort out pieces by their shape. Group together pieces with the knobs and holes on the same sides. That way, when looking for a certain piece you'll only try pieces of that same shape and color.

After all is said and done, you have an awesome work of art that you spent forever to complete! Of course you're proud of your accomplishment, and want to glue it, frame it, and keep it for generations to come. So there are a couple different ways to keep your puzzle intact. I would recommend Ravensburger puzzle glue, or another puzzle glue. If you don't have any, then in a little bowl mix white school glue and a bit of water to make to make the consistency more watery but still gooey.

You may want to use a plastic trash bag to put underneath the puzzle to protect the table underneath. Use a paint brush and brush the glue directly on top, pushing the glue more into the cracks than the surface. Let dry 60 to 90 minutes and then apply a 2nd coat. You can then glue the entire puzzle onto a sheet of lightweight foam insulation using contact cement and construct a frame around that. Now hang your work of art somewhere nice for everyone to see!

By MissMalorie from Yuctown, CA