How to Build a Chess Set From Scratch

Creating the Chess Board

• 1

  Begin by sanding your plywood on all edges to ensure that the wood is smooth. Dust off any particles remaining on the plywood so that your squares will adhere to the wood properly. Your squares should be in alternating colors. Two colors of linoleum tile or two different shades of wood will work perfectly.

• 2

  Use a ruler to draw guidelines on the plywood so you'll know where to put your squares. Measure 1.5 inches from the side of the wood and draw your first straight line. Continue drawing lines every 1.5 inches, until you've drawn seven lines. Shift the wood and repeat this process so the wood now resembles a grid.

• 3

  Using the damp cloth, wipe both the plywood and the backs of your linoleum or wood before applying a dime-size drop of Gorilla Glue to the plywood inside the box. Glue down each square of linoleum or wood, ensuring that the colors alternate. When you've finished this step, the board should look like a checkerboard. Allow the glue to set up overnight before continuing with the process.

• 4

  Screw the 4 wood spheres to the bottom of the chess board at each corner, so the chess board sits on the spheres. Seal the checkerboard by giving it a coat of the clear spray paint.

Creating the Game Pieces

• 5

  Now, you'll need to focus on creating the pieces for the chess game. Using the Sculpey clay and a picture of a chess set as your inspiration, create 16 pawns, 4 rooks, 4 bishops, 4 knights, 2 kings, and 2 queens. Try to make the matching pieces look identical.

• 6

  Place the game pieces on a flat cookie tray and put them in a 275-degree oven for 15 minutes per 1/4 inch of thickness. So, if your queens are 1/2 inch thick, they'll need to bake for half an hour. When they've finished baking, they'll need to cool for a few hours. They should be hard to the touch.

• 7

  Paint half of your pieces (8 pawns, 2 rooks, 2 bishops, 2 knights, 1 king, and 1queen) a color of your choice. You can make it match the colors in the linoleum you created the squares with or you can go traditional and paint them black. Paint the other half of your pieces a different color. Allow the paint to dry and then give the pieces a coat with the clear spray paint.