About the service
I make travel-ready chess sets from vegetable-tanned leather: a roll-up playing surface paired with a fitted case that holds every piece in its own snug pocket. Each order starts with a conversation about board size, square dimensions to match your existing pieces, and whether you want a single combined roll or a separate board and pouch. Squares are laid out with a hand-cut dyeing mask so the contrast pattern stays crisp at the edges — no bleed, no soft lines — and I test the dye lot on scrap before it ever touches your board.
The piece case is where most rolled sets fail, so I spend real time here. Pawns, knights, bishops, rooks, queens and kings all get pockets sized to their own footprint rather than one generic slot for everyone, which keeps taller pieces from tipping over and rattling against their neighbors in transit. Pocket rows are sewn with a saddle stitch doubled at the stress points, and I reinforce every fold line on the board itself — the crease that takes the most repeated flexing when a board is rolled and unrolled hundreds of times over its life.
Closure hardware is chosen to match how you'll actually carry the set: a simple leather tie-wrap for the lightest, most packable option, a turn-lock or a strap-and-buckle for a firmer travel case that clips onto a bag. I keep the rolled diameter compact enough to fit a backpack side pocket or a desk drawer, which is the detail most mass-made rolled boards get wrong — theirs are pretty on a shelf and awkward everywhere else.
Turnaround runs about a week to ten days depending on leather stock and whether the piece case needs custom pocket sizing for an unusual chess set. I share progress photos at cutting, dyeing and stitching stages before final assembly, and I'm glad to quote a matching card-game roll or a second board in a different leather tone for gifting. Message me with your piece dimensions and preferred colorway and I'll send a sample layout before we start.
The piece case is where most rolled sets fail, so I spend real time here. Pawns, knights, bishops, rooks, queens and kings all get pockets sized to their own footprint rather than one generic slot for everyone, which keeps taller pieces from tipping over and rattling against their neighbors in transit. Pocket rows are sewn with a saddle stitch doubled at the stress points, and I reinforce every fold line on the board itself — the crease that takes the most repeated flexing when a board is rolled and unrolled hundreds of times over its life.
Closure hardware is chosen to match how you'll actually carry the set: a simple leather tie-wrap for the lightest, most packable option, a turn-lock or a strap-and-buckle for a firmer travel case that clips onto a bag. I keep the rolled diameter compact enough to fit a backpack side pocket or a desk drawer, which is the detail most mass-made rolled boards get wrong — theirs are pretty on a shelf and awkward everywhere else.
Turnaround runs about a week to ten days depending on leather stock and whether the piece case needs custom pocket sizing for an unusual chess set. I share progress photos at cutting, dyeing and stitching stages before final assembly, and I'm glad to quote a matching card-game roll or a second board in a different leather tone for gifting. Message me with your piece dimensions and preferred colorway and I'll send a sample layout before we start.
