The warmer weather is upon us — time to celebrate! Gather friends to head outdoors for a brightly-colored backyard bash at your place (or set up a party in the park) then keep them entertained with unconventional yard games, like outdoor checkers. Show off your ultra-crafty side by creating an extra-large ombré checkers board using colorful IZZE® bottles as playing pieces. Once your bottle gets knocked off the board, start sipping. Cheers to enjoying some fresh air with friends!
Time: 2.5 hours (including drying time)
Level of Difficulty: Intermediate
Materials:
- 2 32″ x 16″ pieces of wood (we used pine)
- 32″ continuous hinge (these usually come with screws)
- Yard stick
- Pencil
- Power drill or screwdriver
- Sandpaper
- Painters tape
- Paint brush (or foam brush)
- White spray paint
- Paint and primer in your color of choice (we used four shades of yellow to create an ombré effect)
Directions:
Step 1: Cut two 32″ x 16″ pieces of wood (most hardware stores can cut the wood for you) then sand both pieces.
Step 2: Spray paint both pieces of wood solid white and let dry for 1 hour.
Step 3: Using your power drill or screwdriver, connect the two pieces of wood by attaching the 32″ continuous hinge along the 32″ side of each wood piece.
Step 4: Using a yard stick and pencil, measure and mark 4″ increments along the top and bottom of the board. Connect the marks to create columns. Then mark 4″ increments along the left and right side of the board and connect to create horizontal rows. You should have eight 4″ x 4″ squares along each side of the board. Once you have created all 64 squares, apply the painters tape on the outside edge of the squares you plan to paint. The squares you are not painting will be smaller, but once you remove the tape, all of the squares will be the same size. When painting, alternate between white and colored squares (or, if you want to create an ombré board, alternate between the white and all 4 colors). Let the board dry for 1 hour. Once dry, remove the painters tape.
Additional DIY: King’s Crown
Need a clever way to “king” your pieces when playing with bottles, like IZZE®? Make miniature crowns out of pipe cleaners!
Time: 20 minutes
Level of difficulty: Beginner
Materials:
- Gold pipe cleaners (20 pipe cleaners make 10 crowns)
- Bucket or bowl to hold crowns
Directions:
Step 1: Measure the neck of the bottle by wrapping a pipe cleaner around it. Pinch the pipe cleaner at the point where it intersects around the bottle.
Step 2: With the remaining part of the pipe cleaner, make two mini triangles by threading the end of the pipe cleaner over and under the circular section.
Step 3: Using a second pipe cleaner, repeat step two to create two more triangles.
Step 4: Once you’ve completed all your crowns (we recommend making 10), place them in a bucket or bowl next to your checkers board and let the games begin.
Invite guests to celebrate summer with this bright and cheerful free Evite invitation below or another one from Evite.com.
NEXT: Check out more DIYs.
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