Tips for 3D Jigsaws
Putting together a 3D jigsaw puzzle can be tricky especially if you decide to not use the instructions and the numbers on the backs of the pieces that correspond with the instructions that often come with the puzzle but there are other factors that will determine the difficulty level like the number of parts, the size of the pieces, the shape of the completed puzzle and the patterns or colours of the jigsaw. So with these factors in mind here is some guidance as to how to overcome and ultimately solve your 3D jigsaw that with practice should come automatically to you and additionally should improve your puzzle-solving abilities.
The jigsaw may and often does come with the pieces grouped together for each section of the jigsaw so you should ensure then that you don't mix the pieces for the different sections up and make your life more difficult. The pieces will often be ones you push out of a larger cardboard piece or whatever material the pieces are made from and they will usually put the pieces from each section in the same cardboard piece you push them out of so it is a good idea to keep these pieces together when you do push them out to make your life easier.
The jigsaw will often have different sized pieces and I would suggest starting with the larger ones first because they will give you a good foundation to build from and you will often be able to attach several smaller ones to them. The larger pieces are the body of the jigsaw and when you have put a few of these together then you will be able much quicker to start to see the overall shape and form of the jigsaw than if you would do with the smaller ones and this is rewarding and good for motivation.
Group together similar coloured and patterned pieces like you would a normal jigsaw as this will be a big step already to putting it together and the odd unique pieces that are left can be taken care of towards the end when it may be more obvious where they go. If the pieces are patterned or coloured the same but belong to different sections of the puzzle then it would probably be best to keep them separate and with the section they belong to.
The shape of the puzzle can be very helpful especially if certain parts of it are curved, as an example, as you can group the curved parts together and work on these first which should get rid of a number of the pieces and maybe make clear where the rest of them go. The shape could be something familiar like a body part or a fruit like an apple that everybody immediately recognizes and would be the ideal place to start as you already have in your mind what it looks like and therefore a reference to use.
Look for small details that will give you reference points from which you can come back to or build from with a small detail being anything that stands out from the rest of the puzzle as unique and distinct of which there is preferably only one. You may need a magnifying glass to see some of these smaller details or to see them on the box so if you don't have one it may well be worth getting one if you intend to do a lot of 3D jigsaws.
Using the picture on the box as a guide may seem like an obvious one but depending on the size of the box with the bigger the picture on the box the more detail it will show and therefore the more helpful it will be. The picture on the box will be one you will constantly refer back to so that you know you are putting it together correctly and to ensure you have not missed anything. Of course, if you want to make the jigsaw more challenging you could try to do it without the aid of the picture on the box but this is recommended for more advanced jigsaw users with high-level skills.
The puzzle may come in multiple sections if it is a building for example with the roof and the different floors of the building being these sections so in this case, it would be better to work on certain sections one at a time and then put all these sections together at the end. Also, you should keep these different sections separate from each other or in other words far apart so you may need a large surface area to work on so you don't get the pieces from the different sections mixed up and make life more difficult for yourself.
It can be that you know which parts fit together but don't know how they fit together as some 3D jigsaws require the parts to be put together in a certain order or you may have to do a certain amount of trial and error before you can get the parts to align and finally fit together. You may need someone to hold a piece or section of the jigsaw together while you attach a piece so it may be an idea to do the jigsaw whilst having somebody around, in case this occurs, as an extra pair of hands.
Patience is going to be required particularly if it is a large jigsaw with many parts that will take all day to complete or multiple days and it is therefore important to take breaks where possible in order to clear the mind as it can often happen that after taking a break the next step becomes very obvious so if you are stuck at a certain junction then take a break and come back to it.
In conclusion, as you will have observed there are a number of ways and approaches to go about piecing together a 3D jigsaw that will help you to be more efficient and make the experience more enjoyable but if you have tried all these methods and are still struggling then there will usually be an instruction manual that explains how to piece it all together usually involving instructions that correspond to the numbered jigsaw pieces.
