Good Questions: Storing Wood Puzzles

Kittycatalina needs a storage solution. She writes: Any ideas for storing kid's puzzles? We have a ton of the chunky wood puzzles and the pieces go all over the place. The large ziplocs are too small for containing most of them. I've just cleaned the playroom, and have rescued most of the wayward pieces, so I have a stack here waiting for the perfect storage solution. Thanks! Kittycatalina

Dear Kittycatalina:

That is a great question. We remember puzzle storage cases from our own days in pre-school. We like this one from Melissa & Doug. It neatly holds 12 12"x9" puzzles and costs about $30.

Anybody else have a solution?

Comments (7)

We store ours with inexpensive clear plastic containers from The Container Store. They stack nicely and being clear, are easy for the toddler to identify what he wants to play with.

Also, Melissa and Doug have a simple rack for their puzzles that I keep meaning to buy.

http://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Doug-Storage-Case-Single/dp/B000088UPW/sr=1-5/qid=1158880385/ref=sr_1_5/104-3972668-4154316?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games

http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?CATID=71227&PRODID=10018851

posted by kateG on August 1st 2007 at 3:33am
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If you have access to a sewing machine, you can do what I did and just sew quick drawstring pouches for each puzzle. This works well for the oversized wooden puzzles that are difficult to fit anywhere. You could add a little tag to the string (maybe a photo of the puzzle itself), so that they're easily identified.

We have a "one puzzle at a time" rule in our home, so that the pieces don't get all jumbled together.

posted by Speakaboo on August 1st 2007 at 3:54am
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I have a metal stacking tray like that. I also heard an idea of gluing fairly long ribbons to the pieces and to their spots to tether the pieces to the puzzle it belongs to.

posted by tgray99 on August 1st 2007 at 4:10am
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Thanks for the ideas guys!
I like that wire shelf, it looks simple and neat. In a fit of organization, I was planning on going to the Container Store this week anyway, so I will check out that suggestion too.
I was also thinking of some sort of pouch as well. This would be nice because some of our puzzles are over sized. I thought about maybe getting some clear vinyl to make a "window" in the pouch. Nice thing about this idea as they could be hung from hooks on the wall and free up some space.
I"ll let you know when I find the perfect solution!

posted by kittycatalina on August 1st 2007 at 4:49am
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There are a number of options available from Kaplan Early Learning Company.

posted by Jeri Dansky on August 1st 2007 at 5:22am
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If you want a really low-budget solution, ziploc makes storage bags in varying sizes--up to 20 gallons or so. The small or medium storage bags (not the same as the regular sandwich/storage bags) would work for wood puzzles.

posted by Shawn on August 1st 2007 at 6:23am
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We have a gajillion wooden puzzles as well, and regular ziploc bags are a godsend. We store the puzzles in a large basket that I got at Target and the pieces are bagged and stored in the same basket. When my son wants to do a puzzle, he takes it out with the corresponding bag of pieces. I swear to you that in 3 years we have not lost ANY pieces. Hard to believe, but it's true!

posted by missuswayne on August 1st 2007 at 9:32am
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