Draughts, Checkers, TicTacToe, Noughts and Crosses

Call them what you will but I think they are great games.  Easy to play even if you don't have a bought board.  TicTacToe can be played in the dirt with a stick, use paper and pencil or a board with the noughts and crosses or different coloured *pieces*

I haven't played these games for a long time but recently thought that they would be good games to teach the grandkid.  We don't have a board in the house here though so how could I teach her Draughts/Checkers...I know.  I'd make the game, using whatever I had around here.
What did I have around here?  ummm, Some lids from husbands Coke habit, cardboard box, a no longer needed wooden lid...

First off I had to choose my weapon.  OK, not a weapon but a saw to use.  So many and I had no idea which would be best so tried a few and decided on a pretty red one.

I smashed the handle off the lid with a small hammer, cut the edge off the board to square it up, found some sandpaper and made it smooth and clean.

Get the lids to make sure that the board was the right size.  I seem to have plenty of red ones but will need to look for some other colours as I need 12 of each.

I found a spraycan of silver paint so decided that I wanted a silver board.  A couple of coats of paint, measure up so I have 9  squares and there you, or in this case I, have it.  A TicTakToe board.  And as you can see below, I beat myself so I won.

 The draughts side was harder, I had to use my brain and work out how big the squares needed to be to fit in 64 same size ones.   Managed that and used a permanent marker to draw them in.

I was going to colour the squares in with a marker but couldn't find the thick one I wanted so thought that paint would work just as well even if it did mean a bit more work. I found some black paint but not the foam brush I wanted.  Husband suggested a stamp and made me one from a potato.  It worked OK so with using that and a small brush I  now have a finished game-board.  I have since found the foam brush, hohumm, not sure why I don't put things away where they go.

It's a long way from being perfect.  A long way from being good but it will do what I want it to and it is finished and usable.  If I waited for perfect the grandkid would have a job and could buy one. 

I have a black drawstring bag that I got from the free market and this board and all the pieces fit in that.  The bigger board that I intend making will also fit as will the chess pieces so that free bag that I was unsure what to use for will be a bargain buy for sure.

I have an idea on making the chess pieces so might work on those over the next month or so.  I'm going to make a bigger board as well, one that will use lids from milk bottles.  It saves stuff from the rubbish, gives me something to do and will keep me off the streets.