Attach an upright 2 x 4 near one corner of the wooden board. Attach the three other 2 x 4s in similar positions near the other three corners of the board.
Turn over the table and fill the nail holes with wood putty. Use sandpaper to smooth out the putty. Sand any other rough spots on the table.
Use a pencil to draw a square in the center of the coffee table. The square should be 16 inches on each side.
Draw a line every 2 inches from any two opposite sides of the square. You should end up with a total of eight columns inside the square of your coffee table.
Draw another set of lines in exactly the same way between the other two sides of the square. These lines will cross the existing lines. You should end up with a total of 64 small squares inside the main square.
Starting from one of the corners, paint every other square black. Paint all the other squares red.
Apply a clear varnish to your entire table. This will help protect both the wood and the checkerboard design.