Have you ever gotten frustrated with chess pieces’ heads falling off? We did.
That’s why Mer-Mer made this chess set, comprised of 32 pillows and buttons and 64 colorful squares.
For this project you’ll need:
-Half a yard of two different colored fabrics. This will be used to make the pieces.
-32 buttons, 16 of one type (pawns), four of three other types (knights, rooks and bishops) and two of two other types (queen and king).
-Square-patterned fabric.This will be used for the board. You’ll need enough to have 9 or 10 squares on what will be the top side the board.
The extra squares will be used for seam allowance and snaps (note: The snaps allow the chess board to stay folded as a bag, making it portable. You throw the pieces in the bag, snap it shut and go).
-Stuffing for the pieces, but not too much. (Mer-Mer took hers from an old pillow that ripped in the wash in a really awkward spot).
For the board, put right sides together. Sew the sides together so that you end up with 8×8 squares on the top side. This will require folding over an extra square or two, which, as mentioned earlier, you’ll use for to make your seam and attach your snaps. When you finish sewing the board, turn it inside out.
The size of the square on the board fabric will determine your piece size, but remember to cut for seam allowance. Once you have fabric cut for the pieces, start making the pillows, using the buttons to identify each piece. Mer-Mer used crayons for pawns:
Zebras for knights:
Lighthouses for rooks:
Pencils for bishops:
Flowers for queens:
And bees for kings:
Mer-Mer says that the most difficult part of part of the project was making the board and sewing on the snaps. She recommends that you place the snap on the correct square and check to make sure the snaps aren’t upside down.
Sewing With Mer-Mer 