How to Frame a Puzzle — 6 Tips From an Expert Framer

Some framing projects are fairly easy, involving 2 steps — put art in frame, hang frame on wall. There are some projects however that require a bit more skill. We like our customers to be well informed so we went to the people that know those projects the best — our talented custom framing team in our retail store.

This team not only completes the requests of our local customers, but they are also the ones who turn your imagined Design a Frame orders into reality!

This team has had the opportunity to work with a lot of creative materials. One of the most unique products, also happens to be one of the trickiest for the everyday person to frame. We’re talking about America’s favorite rainy-day activity — Puzzles!

There is nothing worse than spending weeks completing a 1000+ piece puzzle to just take it apart. That’s where we come in! Laurie, who has been on our custom framing team since December of 2016, has compiled 6 tips to help turn that loved puzzle into your home’s decor.
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Securing your puzzle

Since puzzles by definition include multiple pieces the first task when framing it is securing it:

1. There is puzzle glue that can be used to permanently keep a puzzle together.  By gluing it, it makes it easier to frame.  Be sure to give the puzzle plenty of time to dry properly before inserting it into a frame.
2. When you pour the glue over top of the completed puzzle, it can be a little messy. Use a piece of cardboard to spread it out but make sure to have something underneath to catch the excess glue.  But be careful that you don’t glue your underneath board to the puzzle itself!

Not interested in permanently altering your puzzle? Here’s Laurie’s tip:

3. If you decide not to glue the puzzle together, use real glass in front of your puzzle instead of acrylic or flexible plastic called Styrene.  This allows you to hold the puzzle together tighter.

Framing your puzzle

One of our customers favorite things about us is that we offer a wide variety of frames to choose from. Whether your décor is comprised of wood, or you have more of an industrial vibe with metal, we have tons of options.

4. When you are going through the many options, choose a frame that will accent the puzzle

Not sure what size frame would be the best for your puzzle? All you have to do is measure your puzzle and go from there!

5. Some puzzles will fit into a standard size frame; for example, a 16×20 frame or 18×24 frame. Others will need to be put into a custom size frame.

No matter what size, standard or custom, we can make your dreams come true. All of our series are offered in 32 standard sizes and the ability to be made into custom sizes!

Since this puzzle is meant to be part of your home décor, there is a very real possibility that you have a frame size already in mind for your space, regardless if your puzzle will fit. Here’s Laurie’s tip to make it work:

6. You can use a custom cut mat board to make it fit into a standard size frame.  For example, if the puzzle is 16×22, you would have a 1 inch mat around the puzzle to fit it into an 18×24 frame.

We hope that these tips have helped you learn how to frame a puzzle. Share with us your finished puzzles framed with Frame USA Frames!