When shopping for a chess set, especially when you are matching up chess boards and chess pieces, there are some useful rules of thumb to consider. I came across knightofchess.com and found some useful insights.

Pairing up chess pieces with a chess board takes some careful thought.

The first thing that must be considered is the size of the base of the King. The King is the largest chess pieces and will therefore have the largest base diameter. The obvious goal is to make sure that the square of the chess board is larger than the base diameter of the Chess Pieces. It is fine to leave it at that. For those who want better refinement, the rule of thumb is to have a chess board square be 33% larger than the base diameter of the King. So, if your King has a diameter of 1.5 inches, then you should aim for a chess board with 2.0 inch squares (1.5 inches x 1.33 = 2.0). Of course you can select 1.75 inches and it will look great, but you probably don’t want to go too much larger.

Some chess sets can be quite pricey so it pays to understand what you need to be looking for.

New chess set offered at MyChessPieces.com

What was once junk to some might fetch a huge price at an auction. Think twice about what you might be throwing out. Note this story by BBC news.

This chess set was modelled to represent the French versus the Moors, showing incredible attention to detail.

A chess set thrown out as rubbish by one of north Wales’s biggest landowners could fetch £5,000 for relatives of the butler who saved it from the bonfire.

The French carved ivory figures which once belonged to Lord Mostyn are due to be auctioned by Christie’s in London.

They are being sold by the great grandchildren of James Baxter, who served the third Baron Mostyn at Mostyn Hall, Flintshire, in the late 1800s.

The auction house said chess sets from the era are “rarely” found complete.

These are really neat looking chess pieces. It’s worth reading the rest of the article. If you are interested in purchasing your own themed chess pieces check out MyChessPieces.com.

Napoleon Themed Chess Pieces by Ital Fama

There is no shortage of neat looking chess pieces out there. Today we highlight Napoleon themed chess pieces. These are manufactured by Ital Fama of Italy.

For more information check out http:www.MyChessPieces.com.