Popsicle Stick Puzzles

Since it has been very rainy this week in the Bay Area I needed some ideas to keep the kids entertained indoors.  On Pinterest I typed in: "Rainy Day" and tons of options popped up.  Here is one.

What you NEED:
*glue
*paint brush (I used a cheap one that I didn't mind getting glue on)
*razor blade or paper cutter
*fat popsicle sticks ($2 at Joanns, or $4 for colored ones; the colored ones would be good so the kids don't confuse the puzzles, or keep them in separate bags)
*pictures (personal, magazines, greeting cards...)
*baggies or envelopes for storage
Optional:
*dish to have the glue in for easy painting (I cut a Starbucks cup down low; free if you just ask next time you go in and then you can throw it away for easy clean up)
*duplicate image for reference when putting the puzzle together (I thought of this after the fact)

Now what?

Take your first image and get ready to cut.  A razor blade works, but I prefer the paper cutter since it is a little speedier.
1. measure the width of the popsicle stick
2. mark small dots on your image
3. cut/slice a straight line across the image

This one I used the razor blade, so the cuts are not too straight

4. Now glue the strips onto the popsicle sticks

if the images are from a magazine you only need a thin layer of glue.  Spread the strip out smoothly.  While it is wet it will look rippled, but it will dry smooth. 

You can see that this puzzle has a print on both sides.  You can get 2 sets of puzzles, but you will want to make sure that both images will use the same # of popsicle sticks.

Here are some more pics:

 

 

Next time I will take a picture of the image before I cut it up so I can stick it in the baggie with the puzzle.

And let the FUN begin!