Crystal-studded dominoes? See for yourself today

Published 12:00 am Friday, July 11, 2014

Linda and Sarah Roeser of Naples, Fla., show off their crystal dominoes.                                Blake Bell/Star-News

Linda and Sarah Roeser of Naples, Fla., show off their crystal dominoes. Blake Bell/Star-News

Summertime is beautiful in South Alabama, but if you’re looking for something pretty indoors, look no further than this year’s World Championship Domino Tournament, where crystal-studded dominoes will make their first appearance at the annual competition.

Handmade by Crystal Chics, a mother-daughter team from Naples, Fla., the dominoes are not just pleasing to the eye; they’re also usable.

“These double-six sets are made from Swarovski crystals, which are the finest crystals in the world,” said Linda Roeser – the mother portion of the duo. “We sell them in leather-bound, glass-top cases. They can be a show piece in your home, but they are also playable.”

Linda, along with daughter Sarah and husband Jeff, are visiting the tournament – as well as Andalusia – for the first time this weekend, but Linda said they all grew up with dominoes.

“My dad was an avid domino player,” she said. “We spent many hours playing dominos with him.”

Linda said it was from that family tradition that Sarah drew the idea for a domino set that could also be a showpiece, adding the World Championship tournament is the perfect place to showcase their product.

“We found out about (the tournament) just from reading and seeing it on the Internet,” Linda said. “We’d talked about coming before, but this is the first year we’ve been able to make it.”

Linda said her family’s domino sets will be for sale all weekend long, with special wholesale prices available, adding they include all manner of crystal arrangement.

“We can do assorted, or sets with a birthstone, or we can have a custom set ordered and made,” she said.

And the grand prize winner of this year’s tournament will also get a free Crystal Chic set as part of his or her spoils. For everyone else, the sets will be available for purchase throughout the weekend and crystalchics.com.