DIY Buffalo Check checkers board
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With so many spending so much time at home these days, I wanted to challenge myself to make something that could be a source of a little added happiness…
So I thought… what about a board game of sorts? How fun! Nothing like a friendly little challenge to break up all the Netflix watching, yes?!
Well, maybe I ought to speak for myself. I have been catching up on Netflix series, but also keeping my mind busy with puzzles, gardening, house upkeep, etc. as living on my own makes it tricky to play a board game with another!
So with families in mind, I pulled out a few stencils, and mused what to make. While there is indeed a Tic Tac Toe stencil (see my board game tray HERE) and Bingo… I decided to turn my sights towards Buffalo Check instead this round.
Why Buffalo Check? I was thinking “Checkers!”
Find Buffalo Check stencils HERE
I already knew Buffalo Check could work as a checkerboard as Becky from Beyond The Picket Fence made one on a table a ways back that was really super cool!
However I came up with another game plan that anyone could do with a simple piece of plywood… and with a slightly different look to the checkerboard! This board would be Buffalo Check but still resemble a traditional checkers game!
So I came up with a pretty fun DIY Buffalo Check checkers board that is totally customizable to your own colours, checkers, etc! There’s so much room for creativity on this one!
Here’s how I made it:
(this post contains some affiliate links)
How to build a DIY Buffalo Check checkers board
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Supplies I used:
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Square piece of plywood (cut to 20″ x 20″)
4 cedar strips (18.5″ long x 1.5″ thick)
*Stencils from Funky Junk’s Old Sign Stencils HERE
- *Buffalo Check – Medium
- *Shipping Crate Stamps
- *Antiques’ numbers strip
- *Stars from Mini Christmas Patterns
*Fusion Mineral Paint’s Raw Silk & Coal Black
*Fusion Mineral Paint’s Beeswax
*Fusion Mineral Paint’s Stain & Finishing Oil in Golden Pine & Natural
*Shop through a local Fusion Mineral Paint merchant HERE
How-to:
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1. Cut a piece of plywood to 20″ x 20″ and paint with Fusion’s Raw Silk.
Find Buffalo Check stencil HERE
How to Buffalo Check the checkers board:
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2. Buffalo Check – medium was stenciled with Fusion Mineral Paint’s Coal Black.
- Since Checkers is 8 squares x 8 squares, mark the centre of 4 squares horizontal and 4 squares vertical.
- Mark the middle of the board at horizontal and vertical.
- Position the stencil in the middle, attach with masking tape then begin stenciling.
- To continue to pattern, overlay the stencil against the edges matching up the pattern to continue until your checkerboard is complete.
- Once checkerboard is complete, reposition the stencil over top once again, but this time, to fill in the empty squares. (see video at bottom of post)
- Continue until all the empty squares are painted.
* Click the video below to view this easy process!
3. To smooth out the surface, Fusion Mineral Paint’s Beeswax Finish was applied to the board to create a little sheen and so the checkers would slide easier.
Although Fusion has a built-in top coat, it is a matte-finish paint, so the added protection helped slick up the surface.
4. Using a palm sander, the edges of the white board were sanded back a little to help finish the board. That step is coming soon.
How to make DIY checkers:
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5. A closet dowel was cut with a miter saw to create 24 DIY checkers. (I cut the checkers at 3/8″ thick)
6. Each checker was held by hand, then lightly hit with a variable palm sander (dialed very low) to smooth out the rougher edges.
This worked fantastic!
7. 12 of the checkers were stained with Fusion’s Natural Stain and Finishing oil, while the other 12 checkers were left natural.
This created two different wood tones. Very cool!
View stencils: Antiques numbers strip HERE / Mini Christmas patterns stars sheet HERE
8. Various stencils were used to decorate the checkers with!
Idea: You could leave one side plain, and just stencil up the other sides so once they become kings, they’re easier to spot!
How to build the frame:
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9. Four cedar strips were cut to size so they’d frame the checkerboard. (18.5″ long)
10. Each cedar strip was stained in Fusion’s Stain and Finishing Oil in Golden Pine.
My goal was to match the darker checkers with the frame. Since the wood was different, it took stains differently, that is why I used more than one stain tone.
11. Before the frame was attached, Fusion’s Coal Black was painted along the sides of the plywood, then a little where the board was sanded so it left a nice edge once the strips were attached.
How to attach the frame:
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12. The cedar strips were positioned into place, then predrilled, then short black screws were used to attach.
Pre-drilling holes helps to avoid the wood from splitting.
The video below this post also shares this framing step.
Shipping Crate Stamps stencil HERE
13. Random Shipping Crate Stamps images were stenciled on top of the cedar plank frame with Fusion’s Coal Black, to mimic the frame being made out of pallet wood.
Fun! Instant personality!
The finished DIY Buffalo Check checkerboard
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So cute right?!
The key with pallet stamps is imperfection, so don’t overlook tilting the odd one or having them slide off the sides of a given surface for a super random stamped look!
And then my pallet-styled checkerboard was complete! All using random scraps of wood I already had at home.
And if you don’t have these wood scraps on hand, the materials are easy to obtain.
Find Stencils: Shipping Crate Stamps / Buffalo Check
It’s so CUTE!
And just for fun, a hinge was installed on one side of the frame… because I had it. Nothing like a little junk jewelry for good measure, right?!
And all that’s left to do is to play checkers!
Um… Sky? It’s your move.
Too bad the bird won over checkers… any other takers?
Video below
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Click below to view a short video of the process!
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How would you do up your own checkerboard to suit your style?
Other related projects you may enjoy:
Make the perfect bulletin board puzzle game board
Visit other Shipping Crate Stamp projects HERE
Check out other Buffalo Checked projects HERE
Visit ALL my stencil projects HERE
I love how you personalized the frame with my fav set of stencils-shipping crate stencils!
Cute!
Gosh, I love your rustic DIY checkerboard, Donna! It would make a fabulous Father’s Day gift. Pinned
Who won, you or the kitty? Ha!! 😀