Life Unadorned

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Photo Gift Ideas {Mounted Photo Puzzle with DIY Cork Frame}

Filed Under: Crafts & DIY, Gift Ideas, Kids Activities

All opinions are my own.
16 x 20 Photo Puzze with DIY Frame
My kids have always been big puzzle fans. It’s one of those activities we love doing together as a family. In fact, I have nice memories of my own parents with a giant puzzle sitting out on the dining room table ready for one of us to discover the next piece or two. John says doing a puzzle relaxes his mind when he’s feeling particularly anxious or stressed, and I have to agree. So when family birthdays or the holidays hit, I often think of them as great gift ideas for my parents, my Grandma, John and even the kids. Puzzles bring people together.
 
Last week my mom came to visit us all the way from Florida. We love having Grandma here, and the kids were SUPER excited to show her the puzzle we just received. It arrived before she did, and they thought it was the coolest thing ever to have a really big puzzle with their faces on it. But they just had to save it for when they could do it with Grandma.
Putting together puzzle
It’s a 56-piece, 16 x 20 Premium Photo Puzzle from Walmart Photo. I sent in a photo of the kids on their first day of school this year. Ellie started Kindergarten so it’s a moment I know we’ll always want to treasure. It’s made on Fujicolor Crystal Archive paper, which produced a beautiful image worthy of hanging. (See my tutorial below for the DIY Cork Puzzle Frame.) Not only is the puzzle high photo quality, but the pieces are also nice and thick, perfect for little hands to easily assemble and not destroy. 
 
It arrived in its own storage box with our image printed on top, which of course is handy when putting it together. My sister in law thinks starting a puzzle with the edges or looking at the photo is “cheating” but I say go ahead. All’s fair in love and puzzles!
putting together puzzle 2
The kids had really been looking forward to doing this one. What a treat for them to enjoy it with their Grandma. Ronin was so happy when it was completed. 
Puzzle completed
Walmart Photo has a TON of great gift ideas like mugs, ornaments, blankets, calendars and of course puzzles, just to name a few. Many are even available for free in-store pick up the same day. Right now an 8 x 10 Premium Puzzle with Gift Box is just $10 (in-store only). 
 
Mobile Image Transfer in-store is quick and easy with the Fujifilm Kiosk Photo Transfer App or you can connect with a cable at a kiosk at over 3,500 Walmart Photo locations nationwide. You can also order online at Walmart where they’re offering free shipping on all cards and gifts through 12/30/15.
 
After assembling our gorgeous puzzle, I decided to mount and frame it, and today I’m sharing my tutorial with you. 

 

How to Mount and Frame 16 x 20 Photo Puzzle

 

What You’ll Need:

2-Large Foam Core Boards  

Black Duct Tape

Cork Tape

Scissors/Exacto Knife

Puzzle Presto Peel & Stick Puzzle Saver

A Rolling Pin

1-16 x 20 Poster Frame (purchased at Walmart for less than $6)

poster frame from Walmart
cork tape
puzzle sticker and rolling pin

Step 1: No Glue “Glue” Your Puzzle Together. 

First you must flip your completed puzzle over because the puzzle stickers must go on the back. This was pretty simple actually. Much simpler than it would seem. We did our puzzle on top of a piece of foam core board. Then to flip we covered it with a 2nd board and flipped. Now it’s time to stick the puzzle together. Of course you can do this step with actual puzzle glue, but I decided to use this ingenious peel and stick puzzle saver. For a 16 x 20 puzzle you will use 2 full sheets, plus about 1/2 of a 3rd sheet of the Puzzle Presto. The handy grid lines help you cut straight.

putting stick backing on puzzle
Peel off the backing and carefully stick to the back of your puzzle. You’ll want the stickers to overlap by 1/3 to 1/2 an inch. Then roll over the back using the rolling pin to really make sure the puzzle is secure. Ellie liked that part very much. 
Ellie rolling back of puzzle

Step 2: Secure with Plexiglass and Black Poster Frame. 

Next you’ll take the plexiglass provided in the poster frame and lay on top of the puzzle. You’ll discard the cardboard backing of the puzzle frame. Then, slide the four black sides of the frame onto the puzzle itself as shown. 

plexiglass and frame sides
Then after all four sides are on, you’ll need to carefully flip over your puzzle. Since you’re not using the cardboard backing of the poster frame, the black frame sides will not stay secure as is. So you’ll then use black duct tape to secure all four sides. 
back of frame with duct tape
Now, at this point, you might be happy with your puzzle frame. It looks pretty good, doesn’t it?! Well, I decided to go one step further and create a DIY Cork Frame. 
puzzle with frame

Step 3: Create Cork Frame. 

Like I said, you don’t have to go on to this step if you like the simple black frame. But I wanted to share how I created this DIY Cork Frame for our puzzle. First I put the framed puzzle back on top of the foam core board. Centering it, I cut the sides to make them even and the width of my cork tape all around. This is the not-so-fun part. Cutting foam core is not fun, but with an exacto knife, it should go relatively smoothly. Once your board is the width you need, you will use your black duct tape again to secure your puzzle to the foam board. 

creating cork frame
Then, roll out the cork tape on all four sides making sure to cover your foam core board. The cork tape has a backing so it’s not stuck down to the board just yet. I taped the cork together briefly as shown above so it wouldn’t move. Then cut at each corner diagonally. Next, it’s just a matter of taping down all four sides and making sure they are even. 
cut corner of cork

Step 4: Enjoy Your New Piece of Art!

Didn’t it turn out great!? I just love it and can’t wait to hang it up in our home to enjoy. Now to figure out if other members of the family would also like a photo puzzle of these cuties for Christmas. 

Mounted Photo Puzzle with DIY Cork Frame Tutorial
Happy Holidays!  

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Comments

  1. I want to do this with some of my vow renewal pictures! Thanks for walking me through it.

    Lee

  3. oh wow i love this. we could totally use something like this in our house and I would have such a great time putting that puzzle together. looks like so much fun.

  4. These photo projects are great fun. I think Walmart really does a great job with it’s photo gift idea suggestions. I have several photo mugs which bring me great pleasure.

  7. Oh, I love this idea and I have a few photos of the girls that I am going to do this with. Looks easy and I love the finished look,

  8. Very creative idea and it looks like a very durable frame. I love the addition of the cork. I have not seen this idea before.

  9. I love doing crafts and would love to try this. I am going to go to the craft store and get some cork. So many possibilities.