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Rainy Day Challenge - Puzzle Time!
by
Mary Ann Goldberg
(IC: homeowner)
5 Materials
$13
3 Weeks
Easy
I was at HL looking for seasonal closeouts when I ran across a puzzle. I thought it would be a fun time that hubs and I could work on together. We each have our own hobbies and are often off doing our own thing. I hadn't done a puzzle for many, many years.
The subject of the puzzle, Route 66, is one that we have taken small trips on, so the puzzle has extra meaning for us.
I wanted this puzzle to be portable should I need to use the table for something else so I started off by making a mat. I am too cheap to buy a puzzle mat when it's so simple to make one. I bought a yard of white felt for $5.99. The puzzle's finished dimensions are 30" x 24", so I cut off a section of 44" x 36" felt to give 6" to 7" extra space of "margins" for loose pieces.
For the next step (I forgot to take photos) I drew the outline of the puzzle dimension on the felt. You can see the pencil lines on the bottom corners. This way I knew where to start building the outside edge. It saved so much time!
Next it's a matter of putting the 1000 piece puzzle together. And it turns out that hubby has no interest in doing puzzles so it took longer than I expected.
After I got the outside edge done there were still so many pieces to sort through so I gathered up a few flat pans and cutting boards and sorted the puzzle pieces by color.
FYI, the puzzle pieces didn't stay connected very well and it was frustrating. Sometimes I would build some of the subject matter in the margins and need to move them to the inside but they'd fall apart on the way. I started using one of the tools above - paint scraper, kitchen scraper or cookie spatula. These worked great.
Then came the day that guests were coming and the puzzle had to be cleared off the table. There's a tile/carpet store a couple blocks away and I asked them for a couple cardboard tubes that the carpets come on. They had many and were happy to get rid of a couple. I cut one down a few inches larger than the mat and then taped the felt end to it. The puzzle was rolled up in less than a minute and was out of the way. (I have a plan for the other long tube that will be shared later.)
I put rubber bands on the ends to prevent pieces from falling out. Sure beats spending $20-$50 for a puzzle mat!
The guests left, the puzzle came back out and not a piece had shifted. I finished it and found out I was missing two pieces that I searched for everywhere. I don't know where they went.
Here is the completed puzzle. Can you see where the missing pieces are? The theme is so "busy" that it's hard to tell.
Enjoyed the project?
Suggested materials:
- Felt (Hobby Lobby)
- Puzzle (Hobby Lobby)
- Yard stick, pencil, baking pans, tape, rubber bands (Already had)
- Hand saw, paint/kitchen scrapers, cookie spatula (Already had)
- Cardboard tube (free)
Published January 23rd, 2018 12:46 AM
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5 of 13 comments
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Anne on Feb 08, 2018
I love both crafts and puzzles. Thank goodness I have room for both. You did a great job on your mat.Thanks for sharing.
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Stelmour450 on Feb 12, 2018
Love doing puzzles now & then. Just wish there was a site where we could swap puzzles as they are quite expensive.
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Mary Ann Goldberg on Feb 12, 2018Stelmour450, I like your suggestion but this map puzzle is the only one I have and I mounted it. I was surprised how much it cost - even with the coupon from HL. Where do you get your puzzles?
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