Thoughts on Jigsaw Puzzle Cutting Styles

[oldjohnevans]

Since I am the inventor of, and the sole promoter of Shape Shifting Jigsaw Puzzles, I shall call myself the “Shape Shifter”

Being new to scroll sawing in general and jigsaw making in particular I have been trying to find a cutting style that is both creative and practical. In searching the web I find the work of John Stokes ( http://www.custompuzzlecraft.com/index.html ) most interesting. I particularly like his unique and beautiful swirl curl style. Unfortunately I do not have the artistic or manual skills to copy his style.

I want to create large complex and aesthetically pleasing puzzle pieces. I try to avoid large areas of uncut wood and I try to insert a sufficient number of hooks and locks so that the puzzle hangs together. Lately I have been experimenting with what I call the NOODLE style. Instead of cutting out individual pieces from a panel of wood I make one long continuous cut that subdivides the panel into two pieces. Then I cut the long noodles into bite-sized pieces. Initially I made lots of mistakes but with practice my manual skills are starting to match what is in my mind. (I have found that the puzzles that I screwed up make very good kindling for starting fires in my wood stove.)

Sometimes when I am cutting thick pieces of wood I end up with cuts that are not truly perpendicular. This results in pieces that cannot be separated. This is not the fault of the scroll saw but because I am pushing the wood to the side instead of in the direction of the cut. I am trying to learn to push the wood forward for a few seconds then briefly release the pressure. This allows the saw to move the panel back to the perpendicular position.

PS – Minutes after writing these paragraphs I stumbled upon this web page (http://www.bell-art.com/Puzzle_Style...le_styles.html ) created by Juliet Bell. She is a professional jigsaw maker. One of her cut styles is called “Continuous Cut” This style creates two lacey pieces. These are then cut into smaller pieces.

[Carter Johnson]

Hi John....

It's good to experiment with puzzle cutting styles. I tried my hand at many of them years ago and found that color line cutting suited me best. I deliberately select pictures that have distinct color demarkations and images within them and then aim toward those to use as cutting lines between pieces, with periodic locks so it hangs together. You've probably seen my work, but, if you haven't, here's a link to one of my Picture Trail albums that shows the fronts and backs of some puzzles I've made.

http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/...9642&members=1

To prevent you having to search the www more to discover the styles of others, check the Private Message I will now send you on this forum.

Keep in touch and good luck...but always have phun.....

Carter

[lucky788scroller]

Wow, I never thought of puzzlemaking to be such a scientific thing. good info though, thanks. Dale

[CanadianScroller]

I have never seen the continuous cut style before, very cool.

[jigsue]

These are superb and really different - more "to dos".

Sue

[iohonnes]

I, too, have playing around with cutting styles. It sounds like we are in similar straits - I'm new to the scroll saw and have been experimenting with puzzles.

I posted a similar topic just about a week ago (see here). I found that this style is fun to cut, but tends not to be as interlocking as a more traditional puzzle cut. Are you finding the same thing? The puzzles I've cut tend to have a number of "fault lines" in them, where they don't interlock as strongly - especially on the exterior edges. I might be cutting the individual pieces to small.

Well, have fun cutting. I've found even if I do (what I consider) a poor job, that friends and family are still thrilled to put it together!

John

[William Young]

John;
Some interesting styles you are developing there.

I really like the color line cutting technique that Carter has so generously helped so many out with including myself.

Like all other art forms there will always be variations.
In case you not aware of, here are some more puzzle cutters that you might get some ideas from.

http://puzzleartonline.com/

http://www.mgcpuzzles.com/

http://puzzlemonk.com/



Have fun with your puzzle making and keep showing your interesting new ideas.
W.Y.

[CanadianScroller]

Something I find frustrating about surfing the net is I often lose sight of the site I was just on.
I stumbled upon a site the other day and I just realized the value of it for this thread.
Someone had taken two puzzles manufactured by the same company.
Both had the same number of pieces and were cut with the same die. They had different pictures on them
The "Artist" made a montage by blending both puzzles.
He would have had to build the puzzles first then swap out pieces.
I wish I could find the photos to show what he did.
I see lots of potential for shape shifting

[Tor]

That sounds like a neat site you mentioned Carl. I know about lost sites, having experienced the same thing myself a number of times.

Tor

[oldjohnevans]

The thing I like about "Ribbon" cutting is that it is fast. No stopping and picking up individual pieces. Also it is progressive. Do a cut, check it out, see what works and what fails. With practice your mind and eyes and hands will come together to create really nice cuts. This only works if you are not doing line cutting.