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(Also know as a Whimsies or figure shaped pieces) The answer is quite simple... a Figural is a single jigsaw puzzle piece or a small group of jigsaw puzzle pieces within a full jigsaw puzzle that resembles an object of some kind, in the form of a silhouette. Some of the more common shapes used are those of dogs, cats, flowers, birds, tools, cars, other animals... the list is seemingly endless! When a person commissions a custom cut wooden jigsaw puzzle to be made, one of the primary reasons they do this is because the puzzle maker is custom cutting the puzzle just for them. As part of the design feature of the puzzle, carefully selected Figurals play an important part of the personalizing process. Whether the person is buying the puzzle for them self, or as a special gift to a family member or friend, the figure pieces are chosen so that they reflect the interests of the future owner. |
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For just about any person's profession, personality or hobbies there are numerous figure shapes that will capture the essence of who that person is. Selecting them is not always simple. A well crafted puzzle will have serious thought put into the appropriate selection of these pieces. Ideally, the image that is being use for the puzzle should come into the equation.
In cases of sky, things like birds in flight, airplanes, and kites make great figure pieces. Scenarios like these are endless, with endless variations of Figurals. Figurals do not always have to be objects... they can also be Names and Dates. Names are commonly used, however dates tend to be cut into puzzles that are birthday, anniversary and retirement gifts, to mark a moment in time that is significant to the puzzle recipient. |
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An interactive figural is something very special. It involves the direct interaction or connection of several different objects to completely express that particular image. In the case to the left, can you guess what the completed image is? Stop reading this for a second, to give it a try... then click on the image to the right to see if you were right. Ok.. whether you guessed right or not, I think you now understand. The pieces to the right are obviously a child, a dog, a wagon, and wagon handle (attached to the child's one arm in this case). When assembled it is a scene of a child pulling his / her dog in a wagon. It is the thoughtful design and placement of interactive pieces like this, that can make a puzzle all that more special. Generally these interactive pieces are used in larger puzzles, as they tend to consume a reasonable amount of space, of several inches by several inches in horizontal and vertical area. |
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In the example to the right, I used a very subtle and simple technique, where the butterfly itself is one solid piece, however if you look closely, the adjacent piece contains the two antennae from the butterfly's head. The subtle cut lines into the adjacent piece add the "special" effect that again makes the puzzle more interesting. |
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complex figural in one where there are several pieces used to
comprise the image. Unlike the Interactive example above, these
pieces generally do NOT have free standing or recognizable shapes
of their own. In this example to the left, the Lobster Claws
are the only thing recognizable on their own, however the lobster
only comes to fruition when all the pieces are put together,
and the image emerges before your eyes.|
for dimension perspective. |
In most cases the answer is YES. As I mentioned above, birds fly in the sky, fish swim in the water etc. It would be odd to see a fish cut into an image where it is located on the roof of a house, or in a tree. In the puzzle example to the left, my customer and I were creative in the choice and placement of this puzzle's figure pieces. If you click on the image to the left, a more detailed scan can be seen, showing all of the following. (Look closely... I did not make a huge 2nd image because it would have taken for ever for you to load.) 007 -
Located in James Bond's forehead, representing his agent code
name. |
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With all of my puzzles cut in the traditional and nightmare styles, I offer 2 Figurals per 100 pieces of puzzle ordered, FREE of charge. You can order as many as 8 Figurals per 100 pieces of puzzle, but due to the fact that planning, cutting and in some cases custom designing the pieces is very time consuming, I charge a fee for any additional pieces beyond the 2:100 ratio. The fee is $7.50 per additional Figural piece. In the time it takes me to design, plan and cut 1 Figural, I could cut from 5 to as many as 15 or 20 regular puzzle pieces. This is a pretty significant observation which makes these special pieces even more precious. Names and dates which involve letters and numbers are calculated as three letters or numbers = 1 Figural piece. Examples: With Objects, here is how they worl A Cat = 1 Firgural piece |
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Figure pieces do have drawbacks, which vary for each person and for each puzzle. 1) Figure pieces with intricate cuttings often make it very easy to find the puzzle pieces that surround them, for example, the image to the left is a photocopy of the back of one of my puzzles showing my signature piece (A child wearing a baseball cap). If you notice the hair, face areas have quick little jagged wiggles to accentuate the eyes, nose and mouth, as well as hair. These quick cut lines stand out as NOT normal in comparison to the rest of the cutting style of the puzzle. In the case of my signature piece, I always match the face with just one opposing piece. Yes, they are both easy to identify and match up, but after they are matched up, the rest of the pieces no longer are as obvious to find, as you can see for yourself. As you can see. puzzles with many Figurals in them are generally found to be easier to to solve, than if the same puzzle had fewer Figurals in it. I find that 2 Figurals per 100 pieces of puzzle is a very comfortable ratio. 2) Figure pieces that have a very detailed outline can become fragile, such as the hockey player above (hockey stick and skate blades), or the Blue Crab to the left (the legs), can sustain damage easier than a normal puzzle piece. In avoiding Figurals that require sharp points, or areas where the cut becomes narrow and long, the factor of possible breakage, chipping and pealing of the piece will be reduced. If you decide to use detailed figure pieces in your puzzle, just remember to take a little extra care when handling them, as well as the pieces around them, and use added caution when you disassemble the puzzle after completion. |
