In the 11th and 12th centuries, Scandanavians sharpened their wits by playing a game known as Tafl which in Old Norse means 'table' and by the end of the period it referred to a variety of board games including Chess (Skak-Tafl or 'Check Table'). However the term Tafl was most commonly used to refer to a game known as Hnefa-Tafl or 'King's Table'. Hnefatafl was played in Scandanavia before 400 A.D. and was carried by the Vikings to Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales and as far east as the Ukraine.

It is an innovative mix of Cross Stitch & Blackwork embroidery styles bringing life and structure to the backgrounds of the squares and creating a uniquely beautiful design.

The flexibility of a fabric games board is suited to so many different ways to fit our lifestyles

• It can be framed or presented on a wooden board under glass to protect your hard-work and the love and passion you put into your stitching
• It is also foldable for travelling unlike many cardboard versions – we even have a customer who has leather backed her kits for use when camping
• It is colourfast cotton so can be washed in warm water without running - and irons well
• The 18 count Aida offers the tension required to provide a flat playing surface for the games pieces – linen can gather more if your tension is not uniform in your stitches

The opportunity to create an Heirloom is here, - why not add a commemorative border to the board and gift to a child as a birthday or maybe christening present instead of a traditional sampler, the child could have it on the wall as a picture until they are old enough to use it to play with. Providing great memories and truly valued present – more details below

Please Note: all our charts are for COUNTED stitching and are not printed onto fabric.

• The Finished design size is 40 x 40cm (16 x 16 inches)
• The Full Kit contains the chart, colour key, instructions, fabric, needle and threads.
• The 'Chart Only' Kit contains the chart, colour key and instructions.
• The Number of Thread Colours used is 1. We recommend DMC Stranded Cotton for our designs but can specify other manufacturers thread codes on request, please contact us for details.
• The Fabric Count for this design is 18 count Aida.
• There are some fractional stitches used in this design.

All our designs are created by Debbie Harding, Copyright © DoodleCraft Design Ltd.

How to Personalise your Games Board

We can add a message into the border which can be personalised to celebrate an event or time that is personal to you or the people you wish to create a unique gift for. Marriages, births, anniversaries, special birthdays, prizes etc. the choice is yours.

When you order a personalised kit we can amend the border to include text of your choosing up to 30 characters over 2 rows, please note that a border which contains a message will be a little wider than those that do not.

Obviously bespoke kits require some additional effort in creation so there is a slight price difference between the standard and bespoke options, however we have kept this as low as we can. The price for a customised Full kit or a customised 'Chart Only' is an addition of £15 to the standard price

Please allow an extra week for delivery of bespoke kits and charts.

How to Order a Personalised kit

Place your order by selecting the custom option above from the variants offered then send an e-mail to contactus@doodlecraftdesign.co.uk quoting your order number in the title. In the body of the e-mail please quote you name and the wording you would like included into the border.