Puzzles - mosaics from numerous details that need to be interconnected to obtain a specific image. Puzzles made of thick cardboard are considered the most common. The number of parts can be different: for kids, sets of 2-6 pieces are produced, and paintings interesting to adults start from 500 elements. For experienced collectors, the largest puzzles are produced, in which from 13-18 thousand parts or more.
Puzzles - an exciting hobby and an interesting pastime
Puzzles can be a real hobby for adults. It is noteworthy that this activity will not require any significant expenses. Psychologists say that folding pictures from many small pieces is a great way to relieve stress, relieve stress, and relax. This is also a certain mental activity, and movements that develop fine motor skills of the hands. For example, doctors advise older people to assemble puzzles in order to maintain clarity of mind and intelligence for a long time.
What characteristic features do quality puzzles have? They have a clearly printed picture, and the details fit perfectly together. The most famous manufacturers whose puzzles are trustworthy are Educa (Spain), Step (Russia), Clementoni (Italy), Trefl and Castorland (Poland), Ravensburger (Germany).
The more pieces, the more interesting
How many elements to choose an image from? Everyone makes a decision individually. According to the "puzzle", the most interesting are the largest puzzles, the number of parts of which exceeds 3, 5, and even 10 thousand. Their assembly takes a considerable amount of time and requires a special place where you can conveniently settle in with the future picture. Still, of course, patience and perseverance are needed, since no immediate result is expected.
It is interesting to assemble large puzzles not only one, but also together or the whole company. This lesson is able to unite like-minded people.
In ordinary stores, paintings of more than 5 thousand elements are a rarity. But in online stores it is easy to order puzzles of any size, including giant multi-thousand sets.
Record puzzles
Currently, the world's largest puzzle - 33,600 pieces. This is a huge picture called "The Jungle", which depicts the nature of Africa and numerous representatives of its animal world. The dimensions of the canvas are impressive: its length is 5.7 m and its width is 1.57 m. This colorful masterpiece was introduced to the world by the Spanish company Educa. The kit comes in a heavy wooden box on casters designed to facilitate the transportation of a giant "toy".
The second largest puzzle in the world consists of 32 thousand elements. This is a Double Retrospective by Ravensburger. Items are packed in a box weighing 17 kilograms.
In third place - the picture "Life" of 24 thousand details. The plot is interesting and attractive: the ocean, many animals and colorful marine life, balloons, yachts and planets.
These are the largest jigsaw puzzles widely known throughout the world.
How to assemble large puzzles: methods and tips
The first thing to do before starting the assembly is to prepare a sufficient number of tightly closed containers. They will store parts after sorting.
Where to start and how to assemble puzzles? When assembling large paintings, a huge amount of time is spent sorting numerous details. It is with the initial sorting that the process of exploring a new puzzle begins. Having carefully examined the image in the picture, you need to conditionally divide it into zones. Next, you need to sort the pieces, grouping them according to different characteristics.
- In some paintings, individual objects are clearly visible - in this case, the pieces are laid out in containers according to which object they belong to.
- If it is impossible to identify individual objects on pieces, the elements can be sorted by color (greens - in one pile, sky - in another, dark - in a third, etc.).
- Details that cannot be assigned to any of the groups are put aside in a separate group.
- Be sure to separately postpone parts in which one (two) sides are even - they will need to be assembled into a frame. This will be the beginning of the assembly process. From the frame it is always advisable to start the assembly. And collecting the largest puzzles, you just need to first assemble the frame so that the dimensions of the picture are clearly visible.
When the frame is ready, it is advisable to start collecting the fragment adjacent to it. The main thing is that its details are easily identifiable. You can also collect individual parts of the picture, placing them approximately in those parts of the puzzle where they belong.
It is advisable to collect the most complex parts of the image (for example, the background or solid sections) by the selection method. Choosing the right parts, they just need to be applied alternately to the assembled areas, thus finding the location of each part. Elements must be perfectly aligned with each other, without any effort when folding. Also, there should be no gaps between them. Sometimes some of their tricks and methods arise in the process of collecting, so the question of how to assemble puzzles as conveniently and quickly as possible, everyone will have their own answer.
Where to collect puzzles?
You need to decide on the place of assembly of the future painting before the box with the details is unpacked. Since the process will take quite a long time, care must be taken that the puzzle is located in a place where no one will go through it. It is desirable that the selected location is well lit. Often there are tips to assemble large complex puzzles on the table, because it is much more convenient than on the floor. However, if we are talking about a large picture, consisting of thousands of elements, then it is often not possible to find a table that is suitable in size.
Of course, you can collect a picture directly on the floor. But it is much better to do this on a special rug for assembling puzzles or on a sheet of plywood.
What to do with assembled puzzles?
After the puzzle of several thousand pieces is assembled, a logical question arises as to what to do next. There are only two options:
1) Admire, photograph, disassemble and leave until the next time.
2) Glue the elements into a single picture and find a suitable place for it.
Jigsaw puzzle lovers often choose the second option, since many people are not interested in collecting the same image twice. In addition, large pictures from puzzles can become a spectacular decoration of the interior of an apartment, house, summer house, office space. For gluing the details of the puzzle, they usually use special glue designed for this, adhesive tape or a self-adhesive film.