Motivational To-Do Jigsaw Puzzle (for the Stressed and Anxious)

Do you ever feel like things are going wrong, and that they are never going to get better? This is why I decided to create my own Motivational To-do Jigsaw Puzzle!

What does it provide?

❀- Calming, soothing experience

❀- Quotes to get you through hard times

❀- Acrylic, whiteboard pieces where you can write (and re-write) your goals!

I've filled my design with fun motivational quotes that I find gets me through the school day. Feel free to take inspiration, and do leave suggestions! I've gone for a more complex design, but anything works. Remember to add your own touch to it!

Happy Creating!

About the Creator

I am studying in Brighton College in the UK at Year 10 (Grade 9 in American terms), and this is my first year taking Design Technology as one of my GCSE subjects.

Machinery

❀- Laser Cutter

❀- 3D Printer

Websites/Software

❀- TechSoft Design V3

❀- Jigsaw Puzzle Generator (link)

❀- Autodesk Fusion 360 (link)

❀- Ultimaker Cura (link)

Materials

❀- 3mm Plywood Sheet (400x600mm or any measurement you want)

❀- 3mm White Acrylic Sheet (any colour, any measurement, as long as you can fit all your pieces!)

❀- Drawstring Bag (it is highly recommended that you make one by yourself)

3mm Plywood Sheet

You can order this at any website that ships to your address. If you have a local woodworking shop close by, do order from them.

3mm White Acrylic Sheet (can be any colour)

Again, you should be able to order this at any website or a local craftshop close by.

Laser Cutter + 3D Printer

If you have one, great! If not, there should be some rentals close by.

Drawstring Bag

Challenge yourself and sew one! You can use any spare fabric you find at home for this. Even though the drawstring bag in the pictures was not made by me, I have started sewing one!

Techsoft Design V3 + Autodesk Fusion 360 + Ultimaker Cura

You will need to download these on a laptop.

❀-Once you have downloaded Techsoft Design V3, go on the the Jigsaw Puzzle Generator website (link in "supplies" section) and choose the dimensions you want for the project.

❀-Download it as a file, and import it into Techsoft Design V3 as a bitmap. This will be your jigsaw base. If done correctly, you won't need to use contour lines.

❀- Now, go crazy! Listen to your heart and make your puzzle however you want to.

❀- You don't need to sketch or draw any of your designs.

1. Go online and search for a line-drawing/clipart that piques your interest.
2. Save and import it into Techsoft as a bitmap.
3. Select the image and select "contour bitmap" in the "bitmap" section of the menu
4. Make the "contour spacing" 0.00mm
5. Select the contour and 'command + e' to explode
6. Select the contour of the outer/inner edge based on your preference (I would go for the outer edge), and drag it onto your jigsaw base wherever you want it to be.

❀- Adding text

1. Select "text" on the left menu (button with "ABC" on it)
2. Input your text and choose your desired font
3. Drag the text onto your jigsaw base wherever you want it to be.

⚠️ Make all the objects you want to cut out red, and the ones you want to engrave black!

❀- If like me, you want to make pieces with a whiteboard-like feature, then this is how you do it:

1. Once you've completed your design, select the pieces you want to make acrylic
2. Copy-and-paste them onto a different file
3. Try to arrange them so that they take up as little space as possible!
4. Save as a file

❀- Originally, I wanted to 3D print my acrylic pieces, which is why I modelled them on Fusion360, but I was adviced by a teacher to lasercut them for a smoother finish.

1. Select "insert canvas" and import a screenshot of your piece (remember to re-size it!)
2. Select "add sketch" and use the line tools to create an outline of your piece
3. Select "extrude" and set the thickness to 3mm (or your desired thickness)
4. Select "acrylic" from materials and drag onto your piece

❀- If I were to 3D print the pieces, I would use Ultimaker Cura

1. Download Ultimaker cura
2. Select '3D print' in files (in Fusion360), select your pieces, then select Ultimaker as your application. It should automatically export your pieces into Ultimaker.
3. If it doesn't let you select all of your pieces at once, export each individual piece. For individual each piece, it should open up into a different file, save all the different files. Choose one of the files as your 'main' and 'import model' of all the others into that one.
4. Position your pieces so that they are not in any of the grey areas
5. Change the settings according to your preferences
6. Click 'slice', and then 'save to disk' as a 3mf and gcode file.
7. Send the files to a teacher, or a supervisor, who will help you 3D print your pieces.

Once you've finished your awesome design, save it as a file and upload it onto a USB.

❀- Plug the USB into a PC connected to the laser cutter, and open the file.

❀- Once the file is ready for cutting, load your 3mm Plywood Sheet onto the laser cutter.

❀- Press "start" and watch your puzzle come to life!

❀- If your puzzle has a more complex design, this will take a while!

Upload the separate file of all the acrylic pieces onto a USB

❀- Plug the USB into a PC connected to the laser cutter, and open the file.

❀- Once the file is ready for cutting, load your 3mm Acrylic Sheet into the laser cutter.

❀- Press "start"!

❀- (Only if you have acrylic pieces) Now all you need to do once you have all of your pieces is to swap the acrylic ones with the plywood ones.

❀- Now, make yourself a snack and a cup of tea. Watch a good film, and pat yourself on the back. Good job!

❀- Or, mix up your puzzle pieces and enjoy an afternoon of brain-wracking fun.

❀- Remember to prepare a drawstring bag to keep your puzzle in, ideally one that you made yourself.

❀- If you want to keep your puzzle as it is, or maybe use it as decoration, I'm sure there are adhesives that you can use to make the pieces stay in place. Just remember to keep adhesives away from your acrylic pieces so that you have a smooth surface to write on!

⚠️ Do take a moment to admire your puzzle before you do anything to it. You might not be able to complete it!

Thank you for making it this far.

Even though I spent hours and hours designing and working on this project, I will be donating it to the Well-being Centre at my school for people who are looking for encouragement and support.

I believe that mental and physical wellbeing are two of the most important things in life, especially for students. As we are approaching the Summer term (exam season), resting and staying motivated should be the priority. This is what sparked my determination to create something that satisfies both.

I hope you enjoyed making (or just reading) this Instructable!