How to Save & Hang a Jigsaw Puzzle (With No Glue or Frame)

Preserving a Jigsaw Puzzle

My daughters recently completed a jigsaw puzzle of Stowe, Vermont. We traveled to Stowe together last summer, and even though the puzzle is a winter scene, it's a sweet memory of our vacation together!

Since I had very little Mod Podge left and no picture frame, I was at a loss at how to preserve the jigsaw puzzle and hang it. It turns out that I had plenty of duct tape - I figured taping the back of the puzzle together with duct tape would work well, and it did!

To start, I slipped some wax paper under the puzzle so I wouldn't glue the puzzle to anything underneath. I then simply spread what was left of the Mod Podge I had across the front of the puzzle. (I used a foam craft brush.) This step is totally optional - I really don't think the Mod Podge is needed with the duct tape. I removed the wax paper.

Then I simply sandwiched the puzzle between two flattened paper boxes so I could carefully flip the puzzle over. (To get the cardboard under the puzzle, I carefully lifted a corner of the puzzle and slid the flattened cardboard box underneath.)

Once the puzzle was flipped, I covered the entire back of the puzzle with horizontal strips of duct tape that ran the length of the puzzle.

I added a few vertical strips of duct tape to reinforce the puzzle. I wound up using almost a full roll of duct tape in total to tape the puzzle.

Hanging a Jigsaw Puzzle

Once the back of the jigsaw puzzle was securely taped together, all that was left to do was hang it! I am a big fan of Command Picture Hanging Strips, so I had a package of them on hand.

All I did was secure 4 sets of the hanging strips to the back of the puzzle. I put a pair on either side of the puzzle on the top, and a pair on either side at the bottom of the puzzle.

Just two pairs of strips would probably have worked, but since my daughters spent so much time on the puzzle, I decided to be extra cautious.

Once the strips were securely adhered to the back of the jigsaw puzzle, I pulled off the tape that covered the adhesive on the wall side of the Command Picture Hanging Strips. I chose a spot on the wall to hang the puzzle.

I pressed the puzzle to the wall, making sure to press firmly on the hanging strips. After about 30 seconds of putting light pressure on each set of strips, the jigsaw puzzle was securely hung on the wall!

I hung the jigsaw puzzle at the top of the stairs in my home's upstairs hallway. I think it's a great spot for such a nice family memory.

*(My estimate below for the project includes the cost of the jigsaw puzzle and the amount of time it took my daughters to complete the puzzle.)