For my main project, I want to make a mechanical wooden puzzle. I have seen these before and they look very intricate and fun to make. I have experience with laser cutting so I plan to laser cut the pieces from wood and I also have experience working with mechanical gears in CAD programs which I think will help when designing this project.

Below are some inspiration pictures I found online of kits you can buy.

For my aesthetic I want to find a mix between steampunk and whimsical. I like this aesthetic because it has a very magical vintage feel to it, kind of like being at a big top circus or a carousel. I think this aesthetic also matches very well with the type of project I am going for because it includes the mechanical elements like gears. Some things that have inspired this aesthetic for me are things like the The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium & Savory Feast Kitchen in Universal Orlando. I went here once as a kid and was blown away by the design of everything.

When doing my own research and trying to define “Whimsical steampunk”, I came across a few images that fit the vision I had in my mind.

Some themes in both the whimsical steampunk search and inspiration for wooden mechanical puzzles were carousels or other amusement park rides, celestial designs, and gears. I drew up a few ideas to get an idea of what I want my project to be. These are only rough sketches and I have not quite decided which sketch I want to go with yet.

Soon, I will start to make preliminary designs in a CAD program such as Autodesk Fusion 360. I would like to get this started as soon as possible as it will most likely be a difficult project due to it being so intricate.