| What is a Whimsy? Whimsy pieces, also known as figural pieces, are pieces cut into the outline shape of a recognizable subject, such as a person or an animal. Liberty Puzzles feature dozens of whimsy pieces in each puzzle. Keep an eye out for separate whimsy pieces that interrelate with one another, such a man and woman dancing. Some of them are even interlocking. The intricacy and broad array of subject matter of our whimsies add a distinct element of charm to the overall puzzle experience. No one knows exactly when whimsy pieces started to appear in jigsaw puzzles, although it was most likely sometime in the late 19th Century. By the late 1920s figural pieces were common among numerous puzzle makers.With the advent and widespread distribution of die-cut, cardboard jigsaw puzzles, whimsy pieces became less and less common. With the exception of hand-cut jigsaw puzzles, today it is hard to find puzzles with whimsy pieces. Liberty Puzzles has brought back whimsy pieces as one of the major attractions of its puzzles. We hope you enjoy finding and identifying each one as you complete your puzzle. A Note Regarding Puzzle Difficulty Whimsy pieces make a puzzle somewhat easier to put together, because the pieces that fit around each whimsy are more recognizable. A number of factors affect the difficulty of jigsaw puzzles, the primary ones being the puzzle image itself, the overall size of the puzzle, and the number of pieces per square inch. The puzzle image affects the difficulty because images with similar color tones and hues or a lot of one color make the puzzle more difficult. Puzzle size and piece per square inch ratio directly affect the difficulty because the more pieces there are, the more pieces a puzzler has to search through to find the one she’s looking for. Liberty Puzzles contain a very high ratio of pieces per square inch (up to two and higher). So while our numerous whimsy pieces decrease the puzzle difficulty, we think you will find our puzzles to be quite challenging. If you are looking for a greater challenge, we encourage you to look for images with similar colors or to purchase a larger puzzle size. Some of our images are noted as being more difficult. Please feel free to e-mail us questions or comments regarding puzzle difficulty. |
