Snazzie.nl snazzie.nl
NL EN

How to make a chess set

for Father's Day!

June 13, 2024 • Painting Father's Day Woodworking Wood Dolls
Download the template

What do you need?
a piece of plywood
a narrow slat 
a saw and a miter box
sandpaper
pencil and ruler
Stockmar paint, in all colours
paint brushes
Bison glue
glue clamps
peg dolls
bees wax and a cloth
coloured wool felt

We are making a chess set for (Grand)Dad for (Grand)Father's Day with very special pieces! This is a really fun craft for us because we saw, sand, draw, tape, paint, dry, glue, paint and dry again, then stick on and dry until we have a unique chess board. What is so unique about this chessboard? Are yoy kidding me? You made it yourself!!

And here's how you do that!

Saw a chess board of 34 x 34 cm.

Sand it until nice and smooth.

Draw the 64 squares on the board.

Leave a border of 1 cm all around.

Tape off half of the squares

Paint half the squares yellow.

Let the paint dry and move the tape.

Paint the remaining half of squares orange

Allow the paint the time to dry completely.

Miter saw the slats and sand them until smooth.

Paint the slats and let the paint dry completely.

Stick the slats around the chessboard and let the glue dry.

While the glue dries you paint the chess pieces, we'll make them into Fantasy pieces ;)
 
There are a King and a Queen (red and green); the wizards (the bishops, red) and the witches (the bishops, green); the Rooks (red and green); the Dragons (the knights, red and green) and finally the subjects (the pawns, red and green).

Paint the peg dolls red, the King and Queen, bishops, horses and the rooks.

Paint the second set of chess pieces in the same way, but use green.

When the colours are dry paint the hair and faces on the chess pieces.

Take the time to let the paint on the chess pieces dry completely

Fetch the glue and the beeswax.

Glue the  together.

Rub the chess board with wax.

Rub the chess pieces with wax.

Allow the beeswax time to penetrate the wood and then rub the wax out firmly, this will make the paint last longer
 
 

Neatly trace the pencil lines on the chess board, using a ruler.

Stick felt on the chess pieces and draw windows on the rooks.

The wizards will be black with a white mask, the witches will be in purple.

Finally the dragons get spikes, teeth and wings.

Let the games begin!

We wish you all a happy Grandfather's / Father's Day with lots of chess fun!