Chess But I Was Hungry

Hey there! I’m Prisha Garg, 16, from Manav Rachna International School, India, and I’m thrilled to share this project with you today! In this guide, I’ll walk you through the process of creating a Pasta-inspired Chess set. This entry includes a list of materials, step-by-step instructions, and tips to help you achieve a polished result. Let’s get started.

Materials-

1. Epoxy compound (Fevicryl mouldit) or any air-dry clay
2. Water and oil (to make modelling easier)
3. Acrylic Paint
4. Glaze or Varnish
5. Aluminium Foil/ Tissues
6. Superglue (Although any brand will work, I used Pidilite FeviKwik)

Tools-

1. Rolling pin
2. Cutter(Exact-o-Knife)/ Knife
3. Markers/ Cylindrical objects
4. Bent Pipes/ Tubes
5. A File/ Sandpaper

Note: Apply oil to your hands and the surface you keep the clay on while working with the Epoxy Compound

I was scrolling Pinterest for inspiration when I saw some unusual chessboards (with minions, mushrooms, etc. as pieces), so I decided to make one of my own!

I thought of things that have multiple types (like furniture, trees, pasta, etc.) and chose Pasta to work on further. Then I browsed different types of Pasta, which were commonly known, easy to make, and felt appropriate to replace the original pieces.

While making the pieces, I got an idea to make the board in clay as well, and make it look like a plate.

Below is the finished design, hope you like it :)

The Board that I had originally made was of a bad-quality Air-dry clay, which had multiple cracks and kept breaking off, so I had to re-cover it with a layer of Epoxy Compound. Instead of following what I did, you may use a thin wood or MDF(Engineered Wood) base and the borders.

For the board, if you're using an MDF base, you will only have to flatten the clay(using the Rolling Pin) and place it on the board.

How I made the board involved rolling and flattening the Air-dry clay and cutting it to Dimensions 30cm X 30cm. After this, I made the borders(which cracked when the air-dry clay dried) by rolling wire-like 30cm long clay cylinders and joining them with base, both from the top and the bottom.

After the board had completely dried, I covered it with Epoxy Compound and let it dry.

On the dry board, I used Sandpaper to give a perfect finish.

Although I am using Epoxy Compound to shape the pieces, you can use any air dry clay. Firstly, you'll need to knead the clay and roll it flat so that its about 3mm thick. Then, 32 plates are cut of approximately 2.5cm or 25mm (depending on the size you take for the squares).

The Plate's border can be created by taking a smaller diameter object and just slightly pressing it in the center to push the clay towards the corners.

In the following steps, I'll be explaining to you the process of building each of the pieces. Although I'll be going through each of the designs, you can play around with your own designs and creativity for modelling the pieces.

The Knights (Quantity: 4)

The Knights are 'Macaroni'. To model them, Flatten the clay and On any bent tube or pipe, wrap and join the ends. For the bent piece, I bent a plastic tube with rubber bands.

The Pawns (Quantity: 16)

By far, pawns are the easiest pieces to create but at the same time the most in quantity. The Pawns are 'Spaghetti' and are just thinly rolled clay. To make them you'll just need to roll the clay into thin strings and then give them a random shape.

The King and the Bishops share a similar structure and are made in a similar way. The differences between the two are the bishops' short stature and the its headpiece structure.

The King (Quantity: 2)

For the 'Rigatoni' King, I used Sharpies on which I wrapped the flatten clay and joined the ends. To give it the lined texture, I lightly stroked the outsides with a Cutter.

The Bishops (Quantity: 4)

The 'Penne' Bishops were modelled in a similar way to how the King was but a thinner pen was used as the base. And for the ends, they were not joined or mixed, but were made thinner so that one of them could rest atop the other. To give it the lined texture, use the same technique.

These pieces are the hardest to model and get right but are the most rewarding.

The Queen (Quantity: 2)

To create the 'Bowtie Pasta'(or 'Farfalle') Queens, you'll need to make a rectangle with the clay and fold it two time at the center.

The Rooks (Quantity: 4)

The Rooks are 'Ravioli' and have a filling in inside them to give them a realistic look. For the filling, you may use Tissues or Aluminium foil. Firstly, flatten the clay into thick sheets. Then, make balls of the filling and wrap the clay around them.

Note: To give the corners a zig-zag look, you can make small triangular cuts with a pair of Scissors or a Cutter

After all the pieces have dried and hardened, you may sand/ file any pieces whose bottom is uneven or a plate with an uneven top and corners.

Give the first coat of White paint after cleaning the Plates/ Pieces carefully. It is optional to give a second coat.

For the colours of the two sides, I chose to use White and Red. Specifically, for the 'white' side, I made a Cream colour with white and skin acrylic, and for the 'black' side, I used Red acrylic paint mainly because of the long 'rivalry' of the two pasta sauces. These colours will not be painted on the pieces but on the plates.

The pieces will have a look like that of boiled pasta with a yellowish look.

After the pieces have dried completely, glue the respective plates and pieces together using Superglue. To glue the Queen and the Rook will be a tedious work, you'll have to hold the piece or support it by an object while it dries.

Although it is optional, you may Glaze or Varnish coat the final pieces. This not only give it a shiny finish but also prevents dust from sticking to the paint. The Coat will also prevent the pieces from sticking to each other and breaking off the paint.

Enjoy :D