Introduction: Chess/Checker Board Made With Memories for Dad
Father's Day is coming and what better way to spend it than playing board games with your Dad! (All those great pics might even distract him and you could even WIN!)
This can be a total digital project or you can make it for him with collage techniques.
This can be a total digital project or you can make it for him with collage techniques.
Step 1: Many Great Blank Board Games Are Available Online (Chutes and Ladders?)
There are so many good free sites available that have printable or downloadable pdf's for gameboards. I chose to go to squidoo.com/printable-Checkers-templates
I decided to make the board digitally so I downloaded the pdf and opened it in Adobe Photoshop. This site offers all kinds of blank templates of games for you to choose. Do you want to take Dad down memory lane with a Chutes and Ladders game? I went for Chess or Checkers for my Dad.
The pdf is recommended to print as 8". I wanted something a bit bigger so I went to "Image" then Adjust Size to 11" in PhotoShop for both height and width. This is so that I could print the final image on 11" x 14" paper and cut off the extra 3 inches.
I decided to make the board digitally so I downloaded the pdf and opened it in Adobe Photoshop. This site offers all kinds of blank templates of games for you to choose. Do you want to take Dad down memory lane with a Chutes and Ladders game? I went for Chess or Checkers for my Dad.
The pdf is recommended to print as 8". I wanted something a bit bigger so I went to "Image" then Adjust Size to 11" in PhotoShop for both height and width. This is so that I could print the final image on 11" x 14" paper and cut off the extra 3 inches.
Step 2: Adjust Your Cropping Tool and Color Mode
Make sure that you size your cropping tool to make the images the correct size for the squares. For an 11 inch board with 8 squares across I used 1.375 Width and Height for the squares. After you crop the original image:
Select all
Copy
Click on the image of your game board and paste the cropped image.
Use the moving tool or the arrows to place the image
*I also took the option on the original digital image to change the mode setting to "Greyscale" and remove the color.
If you want to get fancy then change the setting back to RGB and modify the color scale under "Adjust" "Color Balance". I bumped the blue up to 30 and the green up to 20. I liked a more monochromatic look.
Select all
Copy
Click on the image of your game board and paste the cropped image.
Use the moving tool or the arrows to place the image
*I also took the option on the original digital image to change the mode setting to "Greyscale" and remove the color.
If you want to get fancy then change the setting back to RGB and modify the color scale under "Adjust" "Color Balance". I bumped the blue up to 30 and the green up to 20. I liked a more monochromatic look.
Step 3: Make Your Board With Statagy - Placement Is Everything!
You also have the choice to change the color of the background layer. This automatically colors the empty squares.
Put all the images facing Dad's side of the board. Feel free to "rotate" some images to face your side of the board but this is "Dad's Day". I was hoping that this placement strategy would distract him from his "game plan" and I might be able to beat him after all these years.
I used the "text tool" in Adobe Photoshop to write a Father's Day greeting on every other square.
Next: Print
Glue on wood or cardboard.
Enjoy customizing your own game board and spending some time with your Daddoo.
Put all the images facing Dad's side of the board. Feel free to "rotate" some images to face your side of the board but this is "Dad's Day". I was hoping that this placement strategy would distract him from his "game plan" and I might be able to beat him after all these years.
I used the "text tool" in Adobe Photoshop to write a Father's Day greeting on every other square.
Next: Print
Glue on wood or cardboard.
Enjoy customizing your own game board and spending some time with your Daddoo.
Participated in the
Father's Day Contest
Participated in the
Craft Contest
