Almost Impossible Puzzles - Part 1

Video HERE

I have a fascination for puzzles - and I have dabbled a bit in the Shed over the last year or so, but this entry is really going to be the start of a series of endeavours to make my own puzzles and puzzle boxes... So, starting with an idea from a commercial puzzle - Usually branded as Impossipuzzles - whereby the puzzle image is a repeating small object (I have seen Smarties, baked beans, penguins etc) and the challenge is not necessarily in recreating the image, but in fitting the pieces together in the correct way. These puzzles must still abide by the standard puzzle rules; there are edges and the pieces all have a generally similar shape with simple interlocking parts (Although I have also seen one which is all edge, pretty much, in a series of concentric frames.)

In both of these designs I have tried to defy convention - to some degree - with a non-connected image and edge-less frames...I won't include the patterns unless you really want me to, these are more of a play on a theme that you can easily draw for yourself. The cutting and finishing was pretty similar for both, with changes in the methods of design...

You Will Need:
A piece of wood - I stuck a few pieces of pallet wood together (although not particularly well, which came back to bite me later) but something around 12"x8" (30x20cm) with at least 1/2" (15mm) thickness should be sufficient*
Pencil, paper, ruler and a fairly thick pen to draw the final design
Glue stick and/or Packing tape (I would suggest both to keep the pattern in place for the duration)
Craft Knife
Scroll Saw (Coping saw or jigsaw if you're really good)
Sandpaper
Acrylic Paints

*You can - and probably should - sand the surface to about 120 grit before you start, or sand each piece individually later.

Method:
For the Wall

1. Measure your wood and calculate how large your bricks can be. I aimed for 3x1.5cm, but as long as they are half as wide as they are tall it should look OK.
2. Draw out a brick pattern on your paper, then work out what shape your pieces will be, a combination of 2,3 and 4-brick pieces is a good idea, but try to avoid having too many of the same shape. Draw around these lines with a thicker pen leaving the outside frame intact.*
3. Glue and tape the pattern to your wood then cut out the pieces.**
4. Glue your entry hole, then put the pieces back into the frame and do any re-sizing that is required - depending on your cut and the size of your blade you may need to skim off a bit of everything to get a comfortable fit that drops out probably a bit too easily. (I avoided that and ended up with a wall that doesn't release easily after painting)
5. Draw in the mortar lines with pencil.
6. CAREFULLY using a craft knife carve the front of the bricks and along the mortar lines. Avoid taking off too much, about 2mm should be enough, then sand all the surfaces to 120 grit.
7. Paint around the edges and into the mortar lines with mortar-coloured acrylic... once that dries sand the edges to 180 grit and make sure the fit is OK - raised grain will make it a little tighter, as will whatever finish you use so bear this in mind.
8. If you want you can paint the back of the pieces in black - not the frame.
9. Put the pieces back into the frame then paint the brick fronts. I used a classic red blended with other colours to create the natural variation of brick - and so that every brick was slightly different, but not glaringly so.
10. Paint with finish - or use spray varnish. For the backing you can either glue on a piece of thin wood or cardboard, I went for thinner card printed with the lyrics to Pink Floyd's 'Another Brick in the Wall'.

For the Splash

1. Begin with a piece of paper the same size as your wood. Take a pencil and randomly swirl and scribble shapes onto the page. Try not to edit things yet, keep it free-flowing until the page is pretty much filled.
2. Now use those lines to create interlocking shapes - do not create a straight edge but anything goes as long as the pieces are no thinner than 1/4" (5-8mm)*** and each piece interlocks with at least 2 others.
3. Glue the pattern onto the wood then cut out the pieces.
4. Fit the pieces together and check the fit.
5. For added texture I used a craft knife to whittle the top of each piece, creating more of a paint drop shape - although I did not sand it smooth.
6. Put the pieces together and decide which colours they will be - going by the 'no colours touching' rule is probably best, but the choice is up to you.
7. Paint on a watered base coat of colour, once dry sand to 120 grit.
8. Paint the top surface of each piece with un-watered acrylic, then the bottoms with black.
9. Apply finish, then position an eye hook and try to lift and shake your puzzle.

*This way there is no standard opening strategy of finding all the edges. You will need to cut in somewhere, or drill a very fine hole for your blade.
**I would suggest being rather relaxed with your cutting here, less even pieces allow for better shape matching later.
***Although if you're using plywood you could go a little thinner.

These are relatively easy ideas that you can expand however you like, and good practice for both angled and curved scroll saw cuts.