Puzzle 251 - The Captive Unicorn, But Not Really By Custom Puzzle Craft

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Puzzle 251 - Captive Unicorn, But Not Really
Signed by K. Chin

Puzzle #251 - Figural and some of the puzzle's color line cutting

Annoying Petal Pieces from the stained glass window

I had trouble making this puzzle - I had two failed attempts before cutting a really nice puzzle! I have included the log of my travails here:

As it happened (from my Journal archives)

April 17, 2002

11:59 pm - I cut #250 today, finishing it about an hour and half ago. About 8" x 10", Swirl Curl, preliminary count 231 pieces, with extensive color line cutting. There is one figural, an Owl, visible above the Unicorn's tail. The puzzle is pretty cool, but regretfully is not up to 100 Puzzles Project standards. There is one bad ding, one not so bad ding, one piece that is "very precariously" thin (I did a lot of color line cutting and couldn't see a cutting track and almost doubled back on it), and several color line decisions I made that I don't like. Sigh.

I was thinking of detailing the problems and then having a "Chinese Auction" here, but have decided against it. I'm going to take tomorrow off and then re-attempt the puzzle on Friday. I have some better ideas for how to do the stained glass window (I tried several tacts in this puzzle), also the Unicorn in this puzzle is nearly fully color line cut, in the next one I want it completely color line cut (except for the little "hole" below the tail's "stump" section). I have eight prints of this image - I lost the first one with the bad mount, and now another one with this puzzle - I have six left. I was about 60% done with the puzzle when I decided it didn't qualify, but decided to go ahead and finish it anyway. Tomorrow I will assemble it from scratch to get additional ideas about how to cut it next time, and to see how difficult the stain glass window is.

April 18, 2002

5:35 pm - Cut, sanded the board for #251, the remake of #250. Will mount shortly, cutting won't start until tomorrow, as I want to put more thought into how to cut the stained glass window.

12:42 pm - I've assembled #250, The Captive Unicorn, But Not Really, it is nice puzzle and I didn't notice the super thin piece and noticed only one of the two dings. None-the-less I will not put it up for auction. I'm pretty "pumped up" about the possibilities of the cutting in the stain glass window section, and have decided I'll go ahead and start a new one towards this evening. Off to cut the board for the remake, now.

I forgot to mention, that The Observer, who has been very quite of late, asked me yesterday morning (female voice this time), whether or not there would be any eggs in this puzzle. I said "of course not, this is a Swirl Curl", but she protested a bit and said, "well the other day when I watched you cutting #249 there was a piece that looked like it could have turned into an egg, and that one was a Swirl Curl". When I cut #250, The Observer was nowhere to be found, although there was a piece of paper on the floor near where she had been standing earlier, with one word written on it: Jenin. Yes, I reflected on this, acknowledging that there is a lot of sadness in the world, and that each of us has to do our part to keep on going on with life. Today, I haven't been able to contact The Observer.

April 19, 2002

5:48 pm - What I can say? When it rains it pours. I was about 85% finished with #251, the remake of #250, The Captive Unicorn, But Not Really, when the unfinished section fell to the floor hitting a saw stand weight (about a 50 lb. block of uncut marble) and put a gash in the print. Puzzle ruined, five hours of cutting lost, and the #251 number not assigned. I've recut the board again, will mount this evening and will try again tomorrow. If something goes wrong again, then the eBay puzzle will be put aside as I will focus on the customer puzzle backlog (unchanged at four).

April 20, 2002

9:05 pm - Moderate migraine today, slept a lot during the afternoon, completed about 40% of the third attempt of Captive Unicorn this evening, so far OK. It wasn't until after I cut through the amulet the unicorn is wearing in the second attempt that I realized that it was an Owl - this time around I gave it special treatment.

April 21, 2002

2:28 pm - Puzzle #251, The Captive Unicorn, But Not Really, completed, really! Will launch auction within a couple hours.