What is the best way to frame a puzzle?

What I do is cover the front and the back with clear contact paper, then drop it into a frame from the craft shop.

I have never heard of clear contact paper. Do you risk it having a bubbles or wrinkling?

Clear contact paper is one of my staples in the craft work I do. Yes, it has to be handled just like any other contact paper to avoid bubbles or wrinkles.

I’ve always used puzzle glue.

@Seaofclouds Thanks. Do you think a store like Mchaels or Hobby Lobby would have puzzle glue and frames? I think I will make a trip tomorrow and see what I can find in the stores.

We once used puzzle glue to hold a puzzle together, and it worked really well. The trick was finding the right size frame, which we never managed. My mother-in-law (who finished the puzzle with my husband and our daughter) bought a frame at Wal-Mart that was a couple of inches too big all the way around. It doesn’t look too bad, and I think if she’d taken the time to put some kind of border around the puzzle it wouldn’t be so noticeable. It’s still hanging in the kids’ playroom!

She bought the puzzle glue at a craft store. :)

I have seen some that were quite nice. My friend transferred the puzzle to a piece of old wood. The puzzle was glued to the wood. Then she put a coat of varnish over the whole thing. It came out very nicely.

See also ehow and jigsawgenie

What I am thinking is maybe put that glue on, I am assuming it goes on top of the puzzle like a coating, and then glue the back of the puzzle to oak tag/construction paper, and then maybe putting it in a frame that is two pieces of glass and the puzzle kind of is suspended in the middle. Then matting would not be a factor. What do you all think?

@JLeslie The puzzle has to be mounted on something pretty solid; otherwise it will take on a curved shape.

@perspicacious Good to know.

I would just glue the puzzle (back) to a piece of cardboard cut to fit using Elmer’s. Then put it in a matted frame. If you have the frame back pushing against the cardboard w/ puzzle pushing against the mat (sp?) and glass, there will be enough stiffness to ensure the cardboard does not warp. If you weren’t going to frame it, I’d do ¼” thick plywood. I guess I’m assuming this is a standard puzzle size, like a matter of inches…if we were talking multiple feet than yeah you’d need to consider warp-age and beef up the thickness / rigidity of the backing a bit.

@JLeslie I’m not sure about Michaels (never been in one). Hobby Lobby has a lot of stuff, so I’m sure they have the stuff there.