CHECKMATE: STYLISH CHESS SETS

STYLISH CHESS SETS

THE GAME IS HAVING ITS MOMENT; MAKE THE MOST OF IT WITH THESE CHIC TAKES

The lavish Shagreen Chess Set from AERIN, shown at top, is an instant keepsake. A peek into the process of making a repurposed chess set from GoodWood, shown at bottom. Without a doubt, chess is having a moment. This game of intense concentration and strategy, originally invented in the 6th century, was already perfectly primed for the pandemic (and increased time spent at home), and chess has now also experienced nothing short of a widespread resurgence in interest due to The Queen’s Gambit, a hugely popular Netflix miniseries about a 1960s female chess champion.

In fact, while there was reporting early on of a shortage of chess sets after the show first aired, happily, it seems that fears of being unable to find a pawn or rook may be behind us. With demand for stylish, high-end chess sets on the rise, here are three we love most:

A REPURPOSED SET If you’ve been dreaming of playing chess using a board created with repurposed wood, GoodWood Nola, a New Orleans-based custom furniture firm, has just the board for you. This one is made of several different kinds of materials, all leftovers from their large commercial projects. “This includes small scraps of wood, brass, and hardware that would otherwise end up being stored or thrown out,” says Jordan Gurren Rose, GoodWood’s co-founder and owner. “Second, we use the reclaimed wood—this is typically antique pine or cypress—that’s pulled from old houses in New Orleans when they are being torn down or renovated.” Price: $185.

A GLAMOROUS GAME For the aspiring grandmaster in your life, the lavish Shagreen Chess Set from AERIN, a luxury brand founded by Aerin Lauder, will become an instant keepsake. This is a decidedly contemporary twist on a traditional chess set, thanks to its streamlined chess pieces, one in black and one with a gold-plated finish all presented in a shagreen box with brass detailing. We know for sure that this is one set you’ll want to display on your coffee table. Price: $3,250.

A CUSTOM BOARD Reed Caputo, a furniture designer and owner of Reed Caputo Studio in Sayville, N.Y., recently created a traditional, regulationsize mahogany and maple wood chess set for a Queen’s Gambit fan, using repurposed materials from that client’s own home. “Splitting time between bingeing The Queen’s Gambit and cleaning out the attic, my client came to me with a request for a customized set made out of the materials that were uncovered along the way,” Caputo says. “This is the type of thing you want to pass down for generations so quality is key here,” he says, suggesting you should always seek out a set that’s functional, affordable, and durable. “There’s definitely something to be said about personalized handcrafted items that embody a feeling of nostalgia.” Price: $175-$300.

TERRY MCMILLAN’S FAVORITE SUMMER READS

THE AUTHOR OF WAITING TO EXHALE AND HOW STELLA GOT HER GROOVE BACK TELLS US WHAT WE SHOULD READ NEXT

Terry McMillan is a seasoned novelist with a number of bestsellers— including Waiting to Exhale and How Stella Got Her Groove Back, both of which had film adaptations that were box office smashes—but the experience of publishing her most recent book was a new one.

That novel, It’s Not All Downhill From Here, came out on March 31, 2020—right after nationwide lockdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic. To her disappointment, McMillan had to cancel plans for a book tour and other appearances, and couldn’t interact with her fans.

“It was definitely a learning experience about how lives can change, without us having anything to do with it,” McMillan says.

The book, too, is about unexpected change: The world of protagonist Loretha Curry, 68, is upended by a sudden loss. For McMillan, who is 69, it was important to show that aging does not have to mean losing one’s lust for life.

“I don’t feel old. I’m still having so much fun, and life is still interesting, and there’s a lot to look forward to— including the present moment,” she says. “You can’t worry about how things are going to end. Enjoy what you’re doing right now!” Key to enjoying the present, for McMillan, is accepting what you can and can’t control. It’s no coincidence that the novel she’s currently writing, which she began during the pandemic, will be called Safety.

“Being isolated makes you think about things you hadn’t paid as much attention to. That’s when I started feeling I had more control. You’re either going to suffer or going to survive, and I chose to survive,” she says. “To some extent it’s comforting that we’re all in this together.”

McMillan is hopeful about the months to come, and hope will be a prominent theme of her new book. While readers wait eagerly for its publication, they can turn to her recommended summer reads.

EMILY, ALONE BY STEWART O’NAN “I love any book by him, and I love his characters, because they’re real and what they go through is inspiring. This one is about an older woman who lost her husband. It sounds depressing, but it’s not. She’s kind of a pistol. O’Nan’s language is so rich. The way he writes about these women, as a man—I don’t know how he does it!”

THE SECRET LIVES OF CHURCH LADIES BY DEESHA PHILYAW “My son gave me this one. It’s about Black women who have been goody-two-shoes their whole lives, and decide they’re going to kick up their heels a little bit. I don’t think it’s sacrilegious at all. People have dreams and fantasies, and it’s nice to know about when they take risks.”

THE SUPREMES AT EARL’S ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT BY EDWARD KELSEY MOORE “This takes place at a restaurant, and the main characters are a group of women who call themselves the Supremes. I have little Post-its marking pages throughout the book. I love it when men write about women—sometimes they understand more than we think. Years ago I wrote a book from a male’s point of view, but I don’t think they’re all that complicated.”

BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES “This anthology is published each year and features great new writers. Some people don’t respect the value of short stories. A short story is usually a moment in time, and it’s not meant to solve everything. It’s meant to have you travel emotionally to a point where whatever a character was going through reaches a clearing. It’s almost more powerful than some novels. They capture a single emotion, a single moment. A lot of us as readers tend to overlook those moments.”