Making jigsaw puzzles as a commercial enterprise is over 200 years old; the original puzzles were made of a thin wooden board that had an image painted onto it and then cut by hand into small, irregular shaped pieces by using a jigsaw. Those early jigsaw puzzles had relatively few pieces and the sawing process would remove part of the jigsaw puzzle as sawdust and would render loose fitting pieces as well as an incomplete image. Today’s (mostly cardboard) jigsaw puzzles are cut by means of a razor sharp steel die which is pressed onto the puzzle with tremendous force up to several hundred tons by a hydraulic press.
In order to provide a durable product with clean edges and accurate colors, the puzzle board is made from a high quality paper product that has been compressed to a specific density which can both receive the printed image showing every detail clearly in full color as well as withstanding the pressure of the cutting die without causing the small interlocking pieces to bend or splinter. Gibson’s jigsaw puzzles have up to 1000 fully interlocking pieces which is the most popular size of jigsaw puzzle. Fully interlocking pieces ensure the puzzle remains joined one puzzle piece to the next when correctly joined. Fully interlocking also means that all puzzle pieces tend to be of the familiar, basic shapes which add to the difficulty.
Making jigsaw puzzles involves a strategy which typically involves assembling the easiest pieces together at the beginning. The outside perimeter of the puzzle with its straight edges is a frequent starting point. Gibson’s Puzzles have refined the puzzle making process to the point that their jigsaw puzzle pieces will have clean, sharp edges that will lock together tightly and smoothly. While making the jigsaw puzzle, Gibson’s puzzle quality allow the puzzle enthusiast to enjoy absolute confidence that the minute picture section of the puzzle reproduced on each piece is faithful to the larger image on the puzzle box and is of a quality and which will not warp or discolor.
