DIY Puzzle Party Favors: Make Personalized Puzzles in Canva

Looking for a fun and personalized party favor that kids will actually enjoy? DIY puzzle party favors are a creative way to add a personal touch to a birthday party, classroom celebration, or other special event.

And the best part? You can create the design right in Canva and turn it into a mini puzzle using a 1-inch puzzle punch.

Watch the Tutorial

Want to see exactly how I made mine?

Watch the full tutorial here:

In the video, I walk you through the entire process—from creating the design in Canva to printing, punching out the individual puzzle pieces, and packaging the finished puzzle.

What You’ll Need

Here are the basic supplies I used for this project:

Canva
Printer
Sticker paper
Sturdy cardboard
1-inch puzzle punch
Cardstock for the favor box
Cricut machine, if you’re using a cut box template
Scissors or a paper trimmer

You can also reuse sturdy cardboard you already have at home, which makes this a budget-friendly project.

How to Make DIY Puzzle Party Favors

For this project, I created a 6 × 4-inch design. I started with a Canva invitation template and customized it to create a design that would work for a child’s birthday puzzle.

You don’t need to be an expert designer to make your own. Starting with a pre-designed Canva template makes it easy to customize the colors, text, graphics, and photos to match your celebration.

1. Create Your Design in Canva

Start by creating a 6 × 4-inch design in Canva.

You can use an invitation template as your starting point. Then remove any information you don’t need and customize the design with:

Your child’s name
Age
Party colors
Graphics
Photos
Favorite themes or characters

Keep the design simple enough that the main details will still be easy to see once it’s turned into puzzle pieces.

2. Prepare Your Designs for Printing

Once your design is finished, save it as an image.

Next, create an 8.5 × 11-inch page and place two of your 6 × 4-inch designs on the sheet.

Print the designs onto sticker paper.

3. Attach the Design to Cardboard

Apply the printed design to a piece of sturdy cardboard.

You don’t necessarily need to purchase specialty puzzle board for this project. If you’re looking for a way to save money, you can reuse sturdy cardboard you already have at home.

A cereal box is one example. Simply apply your printed design to the cardboard and cut it down to the size you need.

4. Punch Out the Puzzle Pieces

Now comes the fun part!

Use a 1-inch puzzle punch to punch out the individual pieces.

Since the finished design is 6 × 4 inches, you can create approximately 24 puzzle pieces from each design.

I recommend making one puzzle first to test your materials and make sure you’re happy with the finished result before making a whole batch.

Make Your Puzzle Party Favor Even More Special

I decided to take my puzzle one step further and create a little box to package the pieces.

I found a pre-designed box template in Cricut Design Space, cut it from cardstock, and then created a coordinating label in Canva.

I printed the labels on the same glossy sticker paper I used for the puzzle. Once everything was assembled, I had a cute little personalized puzzle party favor ready to gift.

Customize Your Puzzle for Any Party Theme

One of my favorite things about this project is how easy it is to change the design for different celebrations.

You could create:

Dinosaur birthday puzzles
Unicorn puzzles
Race car puzzles
Butterfly or floral puzzles
Princess-themed puzzles
Sports-themed puzzles
Holiday puzzles
Colorful character-inspired designs

Start with a Canva template, make a few changes, and you can create a party favor that coordinates with almost any celebration.

A Fun and Budget-Friendly Party Favor

DIY puzzle party favors are a great option when you want something personalized without spending a lot on pre-made favors.

You can customize the design to match your party, use materials you may already have at home, and package the finished pieces in a simple coordinating box.

And because you create the design yourself, you can make each puzzle personal to your celebration.

Ready to Make Your Own?

If you’re looking for DIY puzzle party favors that are creative, personalized, and fun to make, give this project a try!

Watch the full tutorial to see how I create the design in Canva, prepare it for printing, punch out the puzzle pieces, and package the finished favor.

WATCH THE DIY PUZZLE PARTY FAVOR TUTORIAL →