How Do You Preserve a Completed Jigsaw Puzzle?

Aside from challenging your brain, jigsaw puzzles can also be saved as pieces of art. It’s surprisingly easy to preserve a high-quality custom jigsaw puzzle and hang it on your wall for admiration.

Once you know how to design a jigsaw puzzle and how to start a jigsaw puzzle, you may want to learn how to preserve your completed puzzle. The best way to preserve a completed jigsaw puzzle is to press it down evenly and apply adhesive to hold the pieces together.

Storing Your Incomplete Jigsaw Puzzle

It’s not easy to complete a jigsaw puzzle in one sitting unless you’re a professional jigsaw puzzle player. It is advisable to sort your jigsaw puzzle pieces in trays, especially when you’re attempting a difficult jigsaw puzzle.

Trays help to keep your pieces organized for easier sorting, which will help you finish the puzzle more quickly. This also helps to keep your work neat and intact, especially when you want to store the incomplete puzzle temporarily. This way, you won’t have to disassemble the puzzle and put the pieces back in the box.

You can use a roll-up jigsaw puzzle mat to store your incomplete puzzle without disassembling the sections you’ve already completed. This mat contains a cylinder you can wrap your incomplete puzzle around and a bag to hold the cylinder as you travel.

Alternatively, you can buy a portable puzzle board that tilts to allow you to view your progress. Most puzzle boards contain storage space where you can keep your unfinished puzzle and unused pieces. If you’re not planning to move the puzzle until it’s complete and glued, make sure you use a designated table where it can stay undisturbed until you’re done.

Puzzle Preservation

As mentioned, the process of preserving a complete jigsaw puzzle involves holding the pieces together with an adhesive and framing the puzzle. You can either use a liquid adhesive or a stick-and-peel adhesive paper to hold the pieces together. 

Adhesive Paper

If you’re using adhesive paper, turn the whole puzzle upside down and stick the paper to the bottom side of the puzzle. This smooth, thin sheet is designed to hold the puzzle together, and it’s less messy than liquid adhesive.

Liquid Adhesive

If you prefer to use a water-based adhesive, be sure that it’s non-toxic, clear, and dries quickly. Liquid adhesive is applied to the top side of the complete puzzle and spread across the surface evenly using a flat piece of plastic. Make sure the adhesive covers all corners and edges of the puzzle to hold all the pieces together. 

Don’t use a paintbrush to apply the liquid adhesive to your puzzle because it can easily affect the texture of the surface; it can also alter the sheen of your puzzle. A smooth piece of plastic like your business card can spread the adhesive evenly without leaving lines or a rough texture. It will thin out your adhesive across the surface of the puzzle and ensure enough of it gets into the spaces between the pieces to keep them glued together.

Once the adhesive on the top of your puzzle is dry, you can roll the puzzle over and apply a small amount of adhesive to its bottom side for a more finished look and to ensure there is enough adhesive to hold the puzzle together permanently.

Final Thoughts

Once your puzzle has been sealed, you can send the puzzle to be framed. Whether you want a high-quality, custom-made jigsaw puzzle just to pass the time or to preserve as artwork, MakeYourPuzzles can give you what you need. Create your personalized puzzle on our platform today!