Puzzle Storage Ideas

Little stackable plastic storage bins are wonderful!! Get one for each puzzle. If my son is doing Legos or something and has sorted pieces out, I give him Ziploc bags to coordinate the sorted pieces, then they go back into the lego storage bin until he works on it again.

J.,

I've always used zip lock baggies. I'll either put just the puzzle pieces in there and label which puzzle it belongs to or I get a large zip lock baggie and put the entire puzzle (board & pieces) in there.

C.

You've already got some great storage solutions. I wanted to share this too: I label the pieces to the puzzles so I know where the lost pieces go. Write the same letter(s) on the back of each piece and on the back of the puzzle when its new. Lost pieces easily find their way back home. The kids can even match letters as they grow. As they get older, it will become even more helpful as the number of pieces gets bigger.

HI J., I found some plastic envelopes at Office Depot that are big enough to store each puzzle with it's pieces. Now when we want to do a puzzle, we pull out one envelope and it's all there.

for non board puzzles, I cut the picture out and put all puzzle pieces in a zip lock bag that is large enough. My twins love to do puzzles, but the boxes used to always get ruined. We have a giant basket that holds all the bags.

I put the bases of the puzzles in a rubbermaid-type bin with the pieces in a separate ziploc bag. Each puzzle has a separate bag. I also had some of those laundry bags for lingerie and I put one puzzle in each of those.

We use old school lunch boxes. My son loves the designs on them and they store great. They function well for travel, too!

hi J.! well, you have some pretty good ideas, but one that popped into my head was to get these storage containers that are called Snapables. i have seen them at Target. they come in different sizes and they are separate boxes, but they snap together to be able to tote around with. so my suggestion is to put each puzzles pieces in it's own ziploc baggie and then toss it into the container. and then if you want or need to take it w/ you somewhere just grab the whole Snapable container and off you go!
i hope you figure it out and my suggestion helps in someway!

In terms of knowing which pieces go together, I like the idea I've seen at the library of marking the backs. They do numbers, but it would be easier to put the puzzle together, flip it over and mark each piece with a dot of color. I like ziplock bags for storage, because you can either write on them or stick on a label with the puzzle name or description. Dump the bags into a box for quick clean-up.

Hi J.,

They make special storage rolls for puzzles at Walmart or Hobby Lobby. They are designed to work the puzzles on its surface with all the pieces laid out and then roll it up to store it when they are done for the day. It works great!! Hope this helps.
L. T

I keep all my kids puzzles in a rubbermaid storage container. I have also seen an idea (i have yet to do it)is to mark the back all the pieces with #1 for puzzle 1 puzzle 32 for the next etc etc. If its a board puzzle mark the back of the board with the same # or box puzzle mark the box. Good Luck!

We finally invested in a puzzle rack for the toddler puzzles. They can be found on ebay, used, for a pretty decent price. We got a wire one, but there are also wooden ones.

Chinese food containers!
If your local place doesn't have the plastic containers, then order soup! These things are great. They are pretty durable. Plus, you can just toss them out when they are worn.

Zip-lock bags and/or plastic boxes. You can remove/cut out the small picture on the puzzles' package and adhere it to the inside (so a small smarty pants doesn't remove it) of the bag or to the top of the plastic box.
Even the wooden puzzles fit well into the larger zip lock bags!

Hi J. If you have a empty large pickle jar or cookie bucket put them in there. Or go to the Dollar Tree or The Family Dollar Stores and buy one.

if you are working with small children's type puzzles.. any of the previous suggestions are very good. Larger type puzzles that need putting away till they can be finished later..require a puzzle wrap.. they sell them often times where you buy puzzles.. but it's pretty much a large felt cloth that you work the puzzle on..and then roll it up..and put it away till next time. Just thought I'd mention it because I hadn't seen it among your other suggestions. It is mostly for the big 500 piece and up type puzzles..but I used to like to do these type with the whole family on boring winter days. The kids thought it was great that they could do adult size puzzles with us.

depending upon their size.....I found that many of our board puzzles fit into plastic file envelopes! It has saved me many a "clean-up" issue. They are cheap, easy to find at places like STAPLES, OFFICE DEPOT, OFFICE MAX.....AND come in colored plastic varieties that are simple to open and close ( I like the ones with velcro tabs, but the elastic button hole type work just as well). I was able to them slip the envelopes into a plastic file box and set the whole batch on a shelf.

I use the really big Ziploc bags and put the whole puzzle and pieces right inside it doesn't look very nice but it does help keep track.

The Puzzle Pod is your solution. (thepuzzlepod.com) It's new and ingenious. You peel off the backing of a vinyl envelope and it sticks to the bottom of the board or box. I have one for every puzzle and now we actually travel with them on vacation. Check out the video for demonstration.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WqUuXZVWlo

I use large zip lock baggies and put the broken box with it. I imagine you old stackable food containers too. We put the puzzles away after completion. You can always glue them together and frame them when you are done.