Board games are always a good activity when the children get bored. Simple board games can be designed without any effort, which is another pro point if an exciting activity is missing during the long winter days. Not only children, but also adults can make their own games and make them playful in their own individual way. Let yourself be seen!
DIY Tic-Tac-Toe
You can do it with the well-known and very simple gameslet his imagination run wildlet. The design options are simply countless and a question of your own creativity. The world-famous Tic-Tac-Toe can be interpreted in a very girly way if the usual symbols X and O are replaced by 'eye with eyelashes' and 'lips'. A really cool idea!
'Tic-Tac-Toe' is one of the oldest classic strategy games. Usually it is played with pencil and on a piece of paper, but it works wonderfully as a board game. It is very simple to design and you can play with it anywhere, even outside.
Instructions and required materials
For our DIY wooden Tic-Tac-To you will need the following materials:
- a square board
- 10Wooden slices
- Washi-Tape
- Color
- Brush, pencil
- Two characters template
Divide the board into nine squares using four strips of colorful washi tape. The wooden discs will serve as game pieces and must then fit well into the squares.
Five wooden discs are then marked with one symbol and the other five – with the other. It doesn't have to be Xs and Oes, but can be other motifs or letters. It is advisable to use two different colors for marking.
The game is generally suitable for children aged 4 and over, but designed in this way, with large, colored game pieces and on a large board, small children can also play. It would be even more exciting for the little ones if they could take part in the design.
Various design ideas
Due to its simplicity, Tic-Tac-Toe can be designed in a very varied and flexible way. All sorts of small objects that you have on hand make wonderful playing pieces. Of course they all have to be similar.
Instead of wooden discs, you can use cork coasters. Stones that have been previously painted in two different colors or even candies made from two different types serve this purpose wonderfully. So that the game can be played on the go, we recommend sewing a small fabric bag and even depicting the network of 9 squares on it.
DIY memory games
Games in which you have to keep different motifs in your head and then find them again are called memory games. On one side all the playing cards or game pieces look the same, but on the other there are different pairs of images. The aim of the game is to always turn over two identical cards and thus clear the entire field.
The playing cards can of course be made very simply and rectangular out of paper. Stickers are suitable for the picture pairs, but you can also think of the motifs yourself and paint on them. Templates are also a good option. Alternatively, you can create different patterns using washi tape.
Make your own memory games out of wood
To ensure that the home-made memory game is robust, lasts longer and is also suitable for outdoor use, it is worth investing a little more in the DIY project. Wooden discs or pieces of wood that can be found in craft stores, but also Scrabble tiles are a good idea.
The small wooden discs or wooden tiles then only have to be designed somehow on one side, because the other can simply remain natural. As always, stickers are good for designing the image pairs. Alternatively, you can stamp the game elements or simply decorate them creatively by hand.
Homemade games are not just a good idea as an activity for children. You can design a DIY memory game for someone and give it to them. For such cases, a fabric bag can also be creative and store all the items well.
If you design the memo game very simply, for example with geometric motifs in different colors, these can serve as an interactive learning tool for small children. This means they learn the basic colors and figures and how to recognize them quickly.
Variation: Memory game with small gift boxes
You can also play a memory game outside on a trip or picnic. To make it even more exciting, especially for small children, they can even design the same elements themselves.
For this particularly creative memory game, several identical small gift boxes are used instead of playing cards. These must always be an even number, for example 10-16. You place small objects in it, such as stones, flowers or leaves, etc., which the children first have to find in the surrounding nature. Then close the lids and find the pairs as quickly as possible!
Craft lady with bottle caps
Another board game that we all know is checkers. It is also played by two players on a black and white chess board. Instead of game pieces, round, flat game pieces are used here. The game is easy to design yourself and can be used wonderfully as a strategic outdoor board game.
The flat, round game pieces are quickly made from bottle caps. They must be colored differently in two colors. A game board can be made from cardboard or stronger cardboard. The typical chess pattern is depicted or glued on it.
You can choose between two variants – a 10×10 board or an 8×8 board. In the first case, 20 and in the second case 12 pieces are required for each player. The game board is divided into squares and colored in black and white. The game is played on the dark fields and the direction of play is always diagonal and forward. The aim of the game is to jump over the opponent's pieces and reach the opponent's baseline.
Ball maze made of cardboard
Perhaps every boy knows the ball maze from his childhood. Although this cult game has a relatively simple gameplay, it requires great concentration and skill. By rotating and tilting the playing surface, the ball is rolled in the desired direction. The holes and the labyrinth make the game more difficult, which makes it a real challenge even for professionals.
You can easily create a ball maze yourself using popsicle sticks from the craft store and a shoebox or pizza box. First you have to think carefully about the labyrinth and the possible paths through which the ball has to be rolled.
The box should be divided into two levels by the actual playing area. However, the glass ball must move freely above and below. The labyrinth is created using popsicle sticks that are fixed vertically to the playing surface with hot glue.
Holes are also made there to make the game a challenge. When punching holes, you should make sure that you leave enough space so that the ball can actually roll next to it.
You can always make something new and exciting from recycled materials, such as cardboard or shoe boxes. How about a children's game? Children quickly lose interest in new things and at some point every toy ends up in the trash can. Then it's a good thing to teach your children that they can create their own toys and then dispose of them. Plus, something you make yourself always has more value than something you buy.
Skill games fascinate young and old alike because they offer a real challenge. This eliminates boredom and promotes strategic thinking in an interactive way. In addition, with a DIY game you have two in one: firstly - a creative activity to design the game yourself and secondly - the pleasure of playing on an individually and very specially designed game.
Make your own glass ball game – circus
Playing with glass balls, also known as the marble game, is a widespread children's game usually with glass balls. There are no exact rules and the game varies depending on the country and location. Of course you can think of something yourself. we suggest a variant.
Our game is called 'Circus play with glass balls' and is suitable for small children. To do this, you make 5 goals of different sizes or heights, where you have to push the balls through with your fingers. Every shot into the goal brings certain points.
The goals are cut out of a wooden board, which is held firmly in a vertical position with two smaller ones. Each gate contains an animal from the circus. We also offer a template for the circus game here.
Print out the template in any size depending on the size of the glass balls. Use this to cut out the openings for the glass ball gates. Solid cardboard or thin plywood are suitable materials for this DIY game. The animals can be colored with conventional water-based paints.
