FM Michal Fudalej with a solid wood walnut and ash ChessboArt chessboard

Why I stepped away for a month

For about a month, ChessboArt was quieter than usual. The reason was simple: I became deeply involved in helping Polish chess locally, and that work unexpectedly grew into something much bigger than a short absence from the workshop.

Regional chess structures, especially from Silesia and Lesser Poland, encouraged me to run for President of the Polish Chess Federation. The candidacy appeared very late, with very little time left before the election, but once that possibility became real, I felt I had to take it seriously.

I did not disappear because I lost interest in ChessboArt. I stepped away because sometimes chess asks you to serve the game outside the board as well.

Why I did not want to lose by walkover

The most honest way to describe that month is this: I did not want to give that match away by walkover. Even though the candidacy came only around a month before the election, I felt that if people trusted me enough to ask, I had a responsibility to fight properly.

I did not win the election. But I also do not see that period as wasted time. A lot of meaningful work was done in a very short window: conversations, ideas, documents, debates, and an attempt to bring more openness, professionalism and modern thinking into the discussion around Polish chess.

Not every important game ends with a win on the scoreboard. Some of them matter because they prove that people are still willing to stand up, speak clearly and do serious work under pressure.

Returning to ChessboArt with a clear mind

Because of that, I can now return to ChessboArt with a clear mind. I know I gave that moment the time and energy it deserved, and I also know that the work done there does not cancel the work that still waits for me here — in wood, design and chess objects that people live with every day.

ChessboArt has never been just a store for me. It has always been an attempt to show that chess can belong on a wall, on a shelf and on a table; that it can be a practical game, a memory object and a part of interior life at the same time.

That idea has only become stronger. After a month spent around organizational questions, I am even more convinced that tangible things still matter: honest materials, careful craft and products that feel real in the hand.

Why solid wood matters even more now

One clear product direction is already visible: more solid wood. Not wood-like surfaces, not decorative shortcuts, and not products that try to imitate weight or depth without really having it.

I want more of ChessboArt to be built around materials that age well, feel natural, and reward daily use. A good chess board should not only look right in a photograph. It should also feel convincing after years on a coffee table, a shelf, a desk or in a private collection.

That is why I am putting more energy into solid wood chess boards and objects that sit naturally inside the wider ChessboArt world of chess for the table, chess for the shelf and chess art for the wall.

The walnut and ash chess board

The first clear example of this direction is the solid wood walnut and ash chess board. It is a compact board designed for Staunton size 3 pieces, with 45 mm squares, overall dimensions of 360 × 360 mm, and a hand-oiled finish that keeps the surface close to the feel of real wood instead of plastic.

On the product page, the board is described as handcrafted in Poland, built from solid American walnut for the dark squares and European ash for the light ones, and released as a limited run of ten boards. That small scale matters to me because it keeps the product personal, controlled and materially honest.

I especially like this format because it is compact without becoming toy-like. It fits a shelf, a coffee table or a smaller interior, but it still respects serious play.

In SEO terms, this kind of object also helps define what ChessboArt stands for: solid wood chess board, walnut ash chessboard, handmade chess board in Poland, compact Staunton size 3 board, and luxury chess design rooted in real material rather than mass production.

What comes next for ChessboArt

From 1 July, I am back to work with a cleaner head and a sharper sense of direction. That means returning to orders, to product development and to the long-term idea behind ChessboArt: chess objects with character, made slowly enough to mean something.

In the coming months, you should expect more solid wood pieces, more table-focused designs, and a stronger bridge between collectible objects, practical chess use and interior design. The wall-mounted side of ChessboArt remains central as well, especially through the Build Your Wall Chess Set concept that already defines a large part of the brand.

Sometimes being away for a month makes the next step easier to see. For me, that next step is clear: less noise, more wood, and better chess objects.