The BIG Chessboard

When we bought our vacation rental home, Casa de Vista, we knew that the front lawn area really needed some love. Three years later in 2020, it was time to address this area. Everything was out of control, overgrown, and needed to be thinned out a bit (or A LOT). We had two wooden decks, a tiled area, and a stamped concrete yard that the grass was trying to take over. What could we do with this area?

We could use some muscle to chip out all the tile and the cement under it, get rid of the area completely, and take that area back to grass, or could we turn that area into something fun and unique for our guests? Brian and I had been to an all-inclusive resort in Mexico that had a BIG Chessboard. It was so cool and made the area look so fun. Is that something that we could even entertain? We kind of had the perfect place for such a thing and it would be something that could set our vacation rental home apart from others. Or at least people would remember Casa de Vista! Right?

How about a BIG Chessboard in the lawn area?

So, after talking for some time about it, we knew it would be no problem tearing out the two wooden decks. But, what about the tiled area? So thinking outside the box, a little bit of elbow grease, some manpower, and supplies would be the plan … and The Big Chessboard project would begin.

Redesigning Unused Space for Vacation Rental Home: A Big Chessboard?

All hands on deck for Unused Space Project: The BIG Chessboard

1. Prepare the surface. In this case, we needed to remove the tile from the cement slab. We used a chisel, pry bar, and hammer. We were lucky, all of the tiles came up easily. Of course, there are those few that were a problem, that’s just part of it.
2. We rented a grinder to run over the surface to take off any mortar that was remaining on the cement slab.
3. A cement mixture was used to fill all holes, cracks and to repair the edges of the cement slab. Allow time to dry – Thank you Carribbean sun!
4. Clean the surface of any remaining debris.
5. We chose 2 different colors for our board squares. We applied the lighter color first over the entire surface. We applied two coats with drying time in between.
6. Some mathematics/problem-solving and figuring took place next. Luckily, the cement pad was square, we only had to divide the length by 8 to get the size of our squares, but the length was an odd measurement.
7. We marked off our squares with the painter’s tape. We painted 2 coats (leaving time to dry in between) of blue in the appropriate squares. I am a visual person … I didn’t want to make any mistakes! How soon I forget that it’s “only paint” … it can always be repainted!
8. Before the second coat was dry, we pulled up the painter’s tape and revealed the squares.
9. Let the surface dry thoroughly one more time.
10. You know what comes next. Get out all the BIG chess pieces and set up the board. Look for a “Field Trip” (Blog) coming that explains how those big chess & checkers pieces got to Casa de Vista.

Learn By Doing – Mistakes are Part of the Learning Process

• The paint did seep under the tape a bit and pulled off in areas when we removed the tape. It was not the tape that we used but the surface. It was not completely smooth so we knew that this could possibly happen.
• We were not totally satisfied with the paint that was suggested to us at the store. But, 4 years have passed and the chipping of the paint has been minimal. Not too bad considering the Caribbean sun & rain that hits that area. More research will be done before we repaint the board. I am thinking that we will have to ship in the next round of paints for this project. When this happens – we will update and report back on our findings.
• Calculations – I don’t do hard math! It’s a good thing that I am married to an Engineer.
• Remember: The chessboard is not perfect and that’s ok. It’s island perfect!

We took an area that would not have been used and needed to be cleaned up and turned it into something with a purpose. What can we add to Casa de Vista that our guests might enjoy is always in the back of our minds. Come to Casa de Vista to check out an area of fun – whether it’s a competitive game of Chess or Checkers, a Family Picture, or a Selfie.

Hey, if you take a Selfie (or picture), don’t forget to tag us on Instagram at @casadevistastx or on our Facebook Page: Casa de Vista – St Croix Vacation Rental Home.

And finally, who do you know that has a BIG Chess Board in their yard? You will remember Casa de Vista! We hope someone says … “We have stayed at several places on St Croix, but remember the house with the BIG Chessboard in the front yard?” And then they say, “We need to rent that place again! It had lots to do, Cruzan Rum to sample, and a beautiful view.”

Checkmate!

PS – The BIG Chess Board may just do its job of bringing our guests back! AND … it will entertain the kids while you are preparing dinner or you are getting ready to go out to eat. GAME ON!

PSS – And finally we really don’t know where to put the King & Queen! Brian and I don’t play chess … HELP!