Jigidi puzzler: Perper "It all comes together"

rorider, I may be able to help.

I do this on a pc with a decent size screen so this may not be practical on a smaller screen, I don't know. I often do random puzzles without seeing the picture beforehand or during solving for added fun.

Personally, I find the secret to quick times is not to seperate the stages out so much.

First I increase the page size to give some more room to spread out, roughly double the size and move the pile to one side. I keep pieces on the right and the puzzle on the left of the screen.

Start the sorting by moving the pieces so that none are on top of each other.
As part of this, I also remove and join the edge pieces. At the same time I will pick a colour or two or three that obviously stands out. It might be sea or sky or grass or whatever according to the puzzle. Those bits go inside the edges on the puzzle part of my screen. Also edges within a puzzle (Outlines, horizons, skylines. That sort of thing.) are often easy to pick out and assemble as I sort.

At the end of that stage I will have the edges done apart from one or two pieces I've missed but I'll find them as I carry on later. I'll also have several small bits that just obviously went together though I may not know what they are or where they will eventually fit. I'll have all pieces clearly visible with none overlapping and I'll have two or more sets of pieces in my solving area ready to go.

I don't know how other "fast" solvers work but I find that working like this eliminates a lot of time spent just moving things around and allows me to concentrate on the fun part, the actual solving, instead of spending time sorting and resorting.

I hope that helps.

I've been with Jigidi for a long time and I never went into the blog page. I did today and I was really impressed with your blog. I will visit it often. I am from St. Cloud, FL

fun reading the interview with Perper; and also all of the responses. what an amazingly interesting community of people!! I am a fiber artist (think quilts+) and I found that doing these puzzles helped me in color selection and blending. My 2nd fun part is beginning an animal puzzle and put it up to finish later. then when my grandkids (age 3 and up) come over they sit on my lap and help me finish it with the sound turned up as loud as it will go - the "thunk" as the piece goes into place is very motivating to them.

Do you use some kind of styles to move the puzzle pieces? I use an iPad and have fat fingers and can't see the pieces very well. If so, what types of styles do you use?

I just want to know how those ridiculously quick times posted for solving come about. Are there secret keystrokes to sort edges? Are they using huge touch screen monitors? I cannot fathom the times (often 1/3 of the time I spend sorting edges) reported. I need an explanation for my sanity, please!

Interesting reading how otherd relate to puzzeling. I'm glad I joined a couple of months ago after Zen mode was in place and can chose the number of pieces. I mainly like to connect to the image, so around 48 pieces is ideal for me. The ability to create puzzles adds a whole other dimension, so thank you to the creators of Jigidi : )

I am a neat freak..My puzzles are aligned. It is a must. I take a lot of time sorting colors. The only piles I start with North south east and west and go for the frame. I don't care how long it takes me. I've got a monochrome hanging in the wings since Feb. It is red ...can't get myself to get back at it. Maybe when the first snow comes down. -------------------------------Bev. 10-17-23

Thank you for sharing!

Thanks Perper. I loved reading how others solve puzzles. I joined Jigidi 15 years ago and I still love it today. I bookmark puzzles in the 240-400 piece bracket. I never look at the picture once I've started a puzzle - I think because looking at the box, when I was growing up at home, was considered cheating! I solve on a laptop and I buy the largest screen they have, mainly for Jigidi. A trick I've found useful is to make the page smaller before hitting solve - the individual pieces don't fill up my whole screen that way which suits me best. After that, I'm like others; I pull out edge pieces as soon as I see them and I group pieces into colours as I go. My favourite puzzles are those that have a variety of bright colours, good image resolution and interesting subject matter and not too much of the same colour in big areas. I quite like having my speed measured by the clock.
P.S. Has Criminyjicket given us a clue as to how some solvers manage to do puzzles so quickly?

Thank you Perper wonderful article.

Interesting article with details about how the writer solves the larger puzzles. Because I have been intimidated by those, I tend to opt for smaller ones. Perhaps, with the technique shown, I can bravely move to larger puzzles.

Happy Saturday to all you puzzlers out there. I have been out for about a year now as health problems keep us from doing some things we like to do but I am a lot better now and want to get into mu puzzles again. I'm not fast like I used to be but that isn't what its all about. Its about the beauty around us and as I work the puzzles I think of God's creation, how beautiful it is ! we need to be thankful for His beauty around us. God is good !

Great article!

I have found over time, not only with Jigidi but with my table top jigsaw puzzles that, yes, my tastes have changed but I have always been a little OCD with the way I organize a puzzle. Always started with the border or frame. Then I will sort by shape but, I have to have them all exposed and aligned for quick viewing. I can spot a piece easily this way. May not work well for others but I am a little strange.

Thanks for all .

Great tips. Thanks for sharing all that.

thanks for sharing

Thanks for sharing and it really encouraged me to hear that I am doing things right. Will be looking for you.

interesting bio Perper, thanks for sharing.

Thank you for this wonderful idea!Love it!!!

Thank you very much for both your reflections and discussion of solving approaches. I like your 'Colour' sorting and piling of pieces with 'internal colour edges, running together.

i enjoy. doing puzzles, I'll do 450 and up. and usually me and my dad would work on some puzzles, that would be arownd 5000 and up boy it would be fun to do

Thank you perper

Evlo 1 fan also, but no new puzzles from there in a while.

Evlo1 fan too!

As long as you dont connect ay two pieces, the timer wont start

Tak for din historie Perper :-)

Before 2020, before the pandemic, our libraries had puzzles set out that anyone could work on. I had to set the timer on my phone.
A cousin put a jigidi puzzle on a family email. That was a happy day. I have enjoyed "puzzling" as long as I can remember. Since I use my phone, I rarely do puzzles larger than 100 pieces. Thank you OXO

As like all of you l love doing Jigidi puzzles especially the old, rustic cartoon puzzles and with a lot of colour. I always do the large puzzles, as they are the most changelling, they may take me hours, but the enjoyment i get is fun so i dont stress about the time. Keep puzzelling!!!

I really enjoyed reading this! I do puzzles quite like you do Perper, maybe just a little more random. All kinds of art puzzles are the best and I focus mostly on the 400 to 600 sizes. I like the challenge!

Hello Perper, I’m from København myself. I have been enjoying Jigidi since my Swedish wife introduced me to it some years ago. I focus on ‘Transportation’ puzzles mostly. I do mostly automobiles and am rather particular of the brands I chose to do as well as the year models. As a lifelong Chrysler product repairman, I do mostly them and do my share of commenting on models and “errors”. I do the frames first but do not necessarily connect the 4 sides initially. Then I concentrate on creating the vehicle by beginning at the most prominent part of the image. I never worry about beating anyone as I do the puzzle on an iPad Mini and the pieces are therefore small. I have also included old photos as well as some of all the cars I have owned over the last 70 years. I also enjoy doing specific ocean liners that I have seen as I grew up driving my father to work along the west side of Manhattan in the 1950s. If you look at my stuff, I’ll be happy to reply to any questions or comments.

gazing and entering the scene for quite a timeless while .. perhaps considering a story unfolding. The either starting with edge pieces of from a perticular object within the image and adjoining. Rarely look again at the image, perhaps if I have to stop before completing and return some time later 🕊🐾🐉

I place all the pieces into a large square about 15 or 20 pices wide and at the same time separate out the edge pieces. This is pretty boring and as I only tend to do 400-600 puzzles can take about 40 minutes. Having done the edges, I then separate out colour sections or particular images to solve sections of the whole picture that eventually find their correct place. Towards the end, particularly where there are large areas of solid colour, I often sort the pieces into their separate shapes - then it's trial and error. I often wonder how anybody can finish a puzzle that takes me maybe four hours or more in about an hour and a half.

Hi Perper lovely to "meet" you. When I am solving puzzles I do exactly the same way as you and find it so much easier. As a child I always had a jigsaw on the go and Mum, Dad and my sister would always add a piece when they were passing the table. Of course now with jigidi I am totally addicted and do at least two or free puzzles a day usually under 300 pieces. AND never lose a piece 😏. Carry on puzzling.

When I was a child, we often had physical puzzles spread on the dining room table to solve. My mother liked doing them, and she taught me that it was easiest to do the edges first, so that's how it went. Then we sorted them into colors and so forth. I always liked doing the sky because the subtle gradients of blue came easy to me and were actually less confusing. My mother didn't understand that and thought the sky was the hardest part. It got to the point where 500 or 1000 piece puzzles were just not challenging enough, so I went and got a 2000 piece puzzle. It was so large, I had to pull out just the sky or just the sea pieces and get chunks of those done so the rest of the pieces fit on the table. The shapes of the puzzle pieces helped because I could physically roll them around in my hand and feel the subtle textures and see where they might go. I miss this with the puzzles on Jigidi, because it's all virtual, not physical. It's also easier on Jigidi, because the pieces are all oriented in the right way already.

On Jigidi, the time factor is most challenging for me. Laboriously sorting pieces into colors like our Danish friend does is more time consuming than I like, so I sort of do that as I go. The top edge pieces are the first separated, as I sort of throw those off screen to the top as quickly as possible, then I find distinctive parts such as a house or a tree which obviously go together and solve those. All the while I sort out the side and bottom edge pieces and assemble them as I go. I do like the scenery and buildings puzzles most, because those pictures naturally make more sense. The hardest puzzles are the solid color ones, and I have published a few of them here. To do a 600 piece solid black puzzle, one has to do the edges first, of course, and then one must laboriously sort the pieces into shapes. Four prong pieces go in one row, two prongs to the sides and holes on the tops and bottoms go in another, and so forth. Then you have to just trial and error it from the corners.

Thank you Perper, that was very interesting. I, too, have tried the grouping of colours (I liked that you put aside a particular colour that pile was for). Just lately I am laying out all the pieces in rows of four across and about ten down and that lets me see and quickly find a piece.
I have done a couple of 600 puzzles, but find them a bit much to do all the time. I did enjoy the sense of meditation it brought with it.
I've been here since 2010.
I find it peaceful and enjoy the company :)

I enjoyed reading about you. I too separate the pieces into like colors or elements in the puzzle. I really like the big puzzles (the bigger the better). I was so glad to see we could do up to 600 pcs now. I haven't been on here much since we could change the size, but this will help me a lot. I only create artwork, with most of them being from the 1800's to early 1900's. I would post them in 2 or 3 sizes to accommodate the most users. Now I can just post the largest size and let everyone resize. It will definitely save me time as I have saved hundreds of artwork that I haven't been able to post yet. I have times when I'm too busy to post or do puzzles. When I do them, I want it to take me at least one hour. I too enjoy Evlo1 and 20catz puzzles and follow them. Now I've gotten my grandkids hooked and they work on the puzzles when they come to visit.

I use a similar method to solve puzzles. Love Jigidi as we have kitties. No more lost pieces of the puzzle. Favorite evening pastime, Jigidi and listening to good Jazz music. Especially during the cold long winter nights.

I am addicted to a couple of puzzle makers who post their own artwork - renniecat and shennele. I've completed almost every puzzle renniecat has posted - even the duplicate smaller sizes. And recently shennele has been creating some awesome flower/tree art that is stunning!

I almost always do the huge sizes - 400 to 600 pieces unless I only have a short time to solve a puzzle. My solving method is to change the background color depending on the puzzle piece colors - it really helps me see the gradients and put the puzzle together more efficiently.

I sort pieces by color and put edge pieces aside by type as I go, trying to clear free space on the board for each color. If there is a lot of one color, I might sort by type of piece - putting all the 4-pronged pieces into a big, same-colored area and then working my way through each type of piece tends to work best for me. With complicated patterns, I pick one color and focus on putting all those together before moving onto another color.

Thanks for the insight in how someone else solves a puzzle. Before I found Jigidi I played a lot of physical puzzles. I also start with the edges and I also sort but not systematically and not only by colours, but also by elements that seem to fit together because I see everything all the time for I have high SPS / hypersensitivity, meaning I have no filter that sorts out unimportant perceptions and can't not see things I'm looking at (if my description makes sense to you). So my sorting is kind of random, for everywhere I look I see a piece that fits somewhere and I have to put it at the right place immediatelly. When I have finished the edge I also have finished some other parts, not necessarilly by colour, but objects or backgounds in the picture. I don't use piles for then I wouldn't see all the pieces at once and that's the reason why I also seperate in the beginning so that there are no pieces overlapping. What I don't like is to play by the timer, that stresses me out. I like to play as a kind of meditation when I need some peace and quiet. I also finish every puzzle that I start, no matter how hard it turns out to be for me and I also love the big puzzles (250 to 500). When I play a puzzle with fewer pieces it's because I like the motif. So thanks to everyone who shares lovely and/or challenging pictures with lots of distinct seperate motifs within the picture or interesting motifs in general.

I have been doing very similar techniques as perper for a very long time. I'm glad to know that I have been doing it right.

Hello fellow puzzle solvers, can I say "Jigidiers". I've been on Jigidi for 14 yrs. I do the edges , then sort by colors; esp if it's a collage. I like Cats, classic cars, trucks, and cartoon covers. I prefer puzzles around 200-300 pieces. Have done some of the smaller ones 9-35, up to the larger ones 450-500. Currently I am stuck at 200-350. Not always a fast solver, but I finish them. Happy puzzling.

Interesting to know how other folks solve the puzzles. I do not separate the colors but use a different ways of solving depending on the content of the puzzle. Thank you perper for sharing.
BTW I love the 'changing puzzle size to my liking' feature. I use it almost every time I solve.

And I like to make my own hot sauces. Just thought I'd throw something random out there.

I'd like to say that I look for the center piece and work the puzzle outward from there, but I don't. Depends on the puzzle, but typically I'll sort the pieces by a combination of colors and shapes. I do like competing for best times...it's fun. There are several puzzlers that consistently kick my rear and I find it enjoyable seeing if I can beat their time when we happen to do the same puzzle. Most of the puzzles I do are in the 100-400 piece range, but I'll do smaller ones if I find it intriguing.

I sort the pieces while looking for all the perimeter. At the top I sort males to the left and female to the right. Once all the edge pieces come together I start with male pieces at the top. When I run out of top pieces I do the same to the bottom then move over to the female pile. I hope this doesn't sound sexist to any of you, that is not my intent.

This blog was GREAT. Interesting to see inside the mind of a fellow Jigidi-er.

I Found Jigidi about the time the Covid Pandemic Started. It saved me from losing what little sanity I had remaining. I enjoy sharing my Train Photos, Auto Racing photos and my travel photos. I might even post puzzles of my Ballroom Dance photos in the Near future.

I can't remember how long I have been 'addicted' to Jigidi. After I had had brain surgery (2016) I found them great for passing time while I was recovering. I now use them as down time and relaxation because I am a carer for my husband. I do 600 piece puzzles on my computer touch screen and do smaller puzzles on my iPad. Its not such a bad addiction!!!

I have worked some puzzles up to about 250 pieces. I really appreciate you explaining your method, now I think I can do larger puzzles. Thank you! I love the pictures too.

I enjoyed reading this, please do more!! I am a "take your time" puzzler. I may get up and grab a beverage or make a phone call, all while the timer is buzzing away. I sometimes look at others time on the same puzzle and I wonder if their enjoyment is speed, not the type of process I use. But to each his own. Ok, on to a new puzzle that could take me an hour to do :)

Thank you for perper's information, I have been doing Jigidi puzzles for 12yrs now. Was off for almost a year after my Husband passed, but as with other things I loved I did return. I have always wondered what other's techniques for solving the puzzles were. I too start with the edge pieces no matter what size the puzzle is. On smaller ones I just separate them out to see each one. Larger ones I stack by color just like perper!

I used to always start with the edge until someone mentioned they sorted by color; that set me free, oddly enough. Now I start with a vivid color from the "inside" of the puzzle and while digging around for those I put the edges aside. Depending on the number of pieces sometimes I'll sort by color or, on the monsters that you like to solve that I only solve because I get sucked in by the puzzle image, I sort by shape. I have more trouble on some of the paintings than on photographs, the brush strokes add a new level of difficulty.

Thank you for sharing your methods. I enjoyed your autobiography. How interesting that you evolved from a puzzle creator to a successful puzzler of artistic quality puzzles compiled by others. Although I enjoy putting them together, I get great pleasure finding photographs of beautiful hard-to-see sites around this gorgeous planet so will continue my armchair travel in this way. Stop by mine when you can! All of the best! @o2barichgirl

Thank you for taking the time to share your Jigidi experience. While I have been ill, I find doing Jigidi helps me get through the day. Somehow I can concentrate on a puzzle before having to rest. I cannot concentrate on my other projects, like crafts and gardening.

I sort by shape. It is easier for me to scan the rows for color than for shape.

Zdravím Vás @Perper! Luštím malé hádanky , většinou do 100 dílků. Na začátku jsem složila jednu ze 600 dílků, dvě po 500 dílků a několik 400. Samozřejmě začínám okrajem, ale pak skládám podle tvaru. Barvy mě spíš pletou.

Thanks for an interesting profile of another Jigidi pioneer. Without capability (or patience) to tackle large-count puzzles, I find the new feature for resizing images (I refer to it as the size-o-matic) a great opportunity to play appealing images of any posted size.

I, too, sometimes separate pieces by colors, especially large puzzles. When I get to a smaller number of pieces left, I will separate pieces by how many holes in the sides. I have a number of different ways to solve. Just depends on what I feel like doing that day. I love to solve 200+ pieces, because it relaxes me. If I solve mostly small puzzles, I find myself trying to do a fast marathon, seeing how many puzzles I can solve.

I would love to meet the other Jigidi users out there. I have been a member for quite a few years myself - at least 7 years, I think - and enjoy selecting and Bookmarking maybe 7 pages of puzzles at a time and then working my way through them. I have a large screen computer and was doing larger puzzles but now stick to between 60 - 120 pcs at a time. Mainly abstract or doors and windows and then any other scenes that catch my eye. Perhaps Jigidi can introduce a "User Chat Page." I rarely beat scores but I have been on the Leader boards a few times but never first. Carolyn living in Spain as an ExPat from the UK.

How lovely to meet you @Perper It is fascinating to read of you puzzling journey and methodology. I really enjoy learning more about fellow Jigidians. 🌍

My process is very similar, put like colors together and take out edges and assemble edges, then fill in rest.

Thank you for this wonderful idea of meeting other puzzlers and getting to know a little about them. The size of the puzzles I do depends on how I am feeling. I have quite a few health problems and they sometimes make it hard for me to do the larger puzzles so prior to the ability to change the puzzle to the size we want I would ask different folks to do it for me. As for sorting I also do something similar but using piles but the idea of setting one piece aside each pile never occurred to me, but I think I will try it from now on when I have a lot of colors without designs on them. I always do the edges first as it is the easiest way to start. Again, thank you for this new feature and I hope we see it more and often. 🌹🌼🌷🌻🌺🦋🙋‍♀️ (●ˇ∀ˇ●) Jeri

Thanks for the post, enjoy learning about others on jigidi. I have come to feel a community bond with my group of advid posters to jigidi. It is gratifying to enjoy a better sense of the world we live in through the members from all over the world here on jigidi.

Thank you :o)
I go for the edges first, then sort colors.
I only have a laptop so my puzzle choices are limited to size.
I absolutely love jigsaw puzzles!

Quiet intriguing, I love his approach to solving the larger puzzles. Very similar to my way of doing it, but I have not graduated to the larger sizes yet, or actually "grouping" colors. I have moved from 9pcs to 35 or 40 but no larger yet, something to aspire to. Thanks for the meet and greet. Voronica~

I'm curious as to the size of your monitor screen? For me, that's been a limiting factor in doing really large puzzles, but your technique of making piles of particular colors would certainly reduce the area needed to sort the pieces. I'll definitely give that a try, and I sincerely thank you in advance!

Thanks. I hadn't thought of putting a separate piece beside the pile when sorting colors. That will be very helpful.

Most interesting! I find I enjoy puzzles around 80 pieces in size but also venture up to 120 from time to time. Can't imagine tackling 500.

That was interesting to read about Perper.

This was so interesting. Thanks for sharing 😊

Loved reading this! Thanks so much for posting it.

Thank you for sharing this wonderful and inspiring information.

I don't do huge numbers of pieces (yet), my limit is around 100, but I do the edges and sort any prominent features off to the sides. I love to complete, oh say a train or boat, and drop it intact in the finished 'frame'

Wonderful to read about another solver! Thanks for sharing!

Thank you for very interesting and inspiring information.

It is great that one is willing to share a bit of themselves....the importance of "Play" is central to our species no matter how old we get.

Keep the bio's going.

Love, Puggles1234.

Solidaire !

love this!

This is nice feature being introduced. I really like hearing about fellow jigideers! So many different stories from all over the globe, but all sharing this love of solving puzzles...thank you!

It's very interesting to know how other people solve puzzles. I never thought of putting the colours and shapes into their own piles on jigidi, though I do in cardboard puzzles. I might try it on a couple of 500 pieces I have ongoing here. Thank you for this Perper.

Interesting,thanks for your input.