About Whittled
Built for people who
care how things are made.
Whittled understands photographs. That perspective shapes the image preparation, material, cut, and finished puzzle—so a meaningful picture can be built at the table and kept in view afterward.
Why Whittled Exists
The puzzle sat on the table.
The art went on the wall.
Most puzzles end up back in the box. You finish them, you admire them for a moment, and then they disappear. That always seemed wrong to us — because the image deserves better, and so does the experience of building it.
Whittled was built on a different premise: that a puzzle could be worthy of the wall. That the process of building it — piece by piece, over evenings at the table — could produce something you'd actually want to keep.
That's not an accident of design. It's a deliberate choice made in every material, every partnership, every image we choose to cut.
The Founder
Matt Newman
Handcrafted in the Ozarks
Before Whittled, Matt served as President of UW Solutions, the parent company of ChromaLuxe and Unisub. That work built experience with coated substrates, dye-sublimation production, and professional photographic display materials.
Whittled applies that background to a different format: preparing a photograph for a coated hardwood puzzle surface, then cutting it into an object meant to be handled and displayed.
The production discipline comes from a different chapter. Matt also served as Global VP of Operations at Regal Rexnord, bringing manufacturing and supply-chain experience to the workshop process.
Whittled is built on one conviction: that the personal photo gift category deserved better materials, a more considered cut, and a finished object worth keeping out after the last piece clicks into place.
The Craft
We are obsessive about
how it feels in your hands.
The Material
We use a hardwood puzzle substrate rather than cardboard. Its rigidity and weight give each piece a substantial feel in the hand.
The Color
Dye sublimation transfers the photograph into a receptive coating on the hardwood puzzle substrate rather than laminating a paper print on top.
That process is selected to carry photographic color and detail across a surface designed for handling and display.
The Cut
Laser precision. Every piece fits the way it should — firm, deliberate, unmistakable. We call it The Click. It's the kind of detail you don't forget once you've felt it.
The Hunt
We hide things
inside the cuts that invite it.
Signature Mix and Whimsy Forward cuts contain recognizable shapes you may not notice until the build is underway. Customers who prefer a familiar solve can choose Classic Interlock instead.
On custom puzzles, those shapes can follow the story: wedding rings, doves, or the silhouette of a mountain you climbed together. The tier determines how individually that direction is developed.
You don't know what you're hunting until you find it. That's the point.
Artist Partnerships
The image is not an afterthought.
It's the whole point.
Every Whittled collection begins with a photograph worth building. We partner with artists whose work stops people — wildlife photographers, landscape photographers, artists who've spent careers chasing one perfect image.
Originals are released as numbered editions, with the edition size shown on each product page. Artist-led work is credited where the catalog identifies an artist collaboration.
We believe the people who make extraordinary images deserve a format as deliberate as the work itself.
Meet Our Artists
Artist Study
The Wildlife Series
Our Promise
The Lifetime Color Guarantee
If the covered image surface fades, degrades, or separates under normal indoor display conditions, Whittled will remake the puzzle under the published guarantee.
The full terms explain what is covered, what is excluded, care guidance, and how to request a remake.
Custom Puzzles
Give them hours at the table. And something worth keeping.
Start with a wedding photo, family memory, favorite place, or the pet everyone talks about. We turn it into a puzzle worth building together — and keeping on the wall.
Start a Custom PuzzleThe Collection
Explore the collection.
Custom puzzles, artist editions, and keepsake gifts designed to stay out of the box.
Browse the Shop