Party Games on a Budget

You’ve put all of the money for your party budget into the food and beverages. There’s still the entertainment to think about. You don’t have to spend a fortune to keep your guests happy and enjoying themselves. And you don’t have to.

Here are some ideas for party games on a budget.

Charades
It’s a traditional favorite, but charades never fails to entertain. Young and old alike can participate in this classic guessing game. Guests play the game by acting out or miming the secret clue to their team for them to guess what it is. Either way, plan ahead by writing down a variety of clues and having them available in a bowl or a box for guests to choose randomly. Clues can be from: movies, televisions shows, songs, quotes, sayings, food, sports, poem, animal, location, event, etc. Just make sure everyone knows your house rules before the game gets started.

Twister
Twister is another fun party game where people will get to interact with others. You can play this with kids or make it an all-adult game. It’s a great way to get singles out of the corner and participating. The game is played on a mat that you place on the floor. You can make one with a plain white sheet and colored magic markets. There are four rows of colored circles in yellow, red, blue, and green. A spinner comes with the game to give you action and direction for your left and right foot, as well as your left and right hand. It also has the four colors on it. A player spins and acts out what is directed by the spinner, for example: “left foot blue.” The more people on the board, the funnier and crazier the results. There’s no limit to how many people can play. You’re the host…you make the rules.

Win, Lose, or Draw
This game is very much like a mix of Charades and Pictionary, only it’s a do-it-yourself home version. A secret clue is given to each team for them to guess. Just have an easel, an oversized pad of paper (from local office supply store), and several magic markers. However, this game is all about drawing out the clue, which can make for some raw hilarity. Have an egg time handy so that each team has the same fair amount of time to guess their clues. Topics should come from the following categories: people/places/animals, object, action, difficult words. You can write these out ahead of time and keep them in separate bowls for your teams to choose from. Set a limit to how long you’ll play the game and the team with the most correct answers win.

Balderdash
If you’re good at bluffing and using your imagination, then this is the game for you. You can also construct a homemade version, as well, which is explained here. Before your guests arrive, use your dictionary to formulate uncommon or hard to spell words. Have the correct definition written out for each one. To play, all players roll a die and the highest roll gets to be the “dasher.” The dasher chooses a word and reads it out loud to everyone. Players write down what they believe the definition is of the word. This is your chance to get creative if you don’t know what the word means. Everyone passes their definition to the dasher who then reads all of the definitions, including the real one. Players vote on what they think is the real meaning. Anyone who submits the correct answer gets three points. If a player guesses the correct definition, it’s two points. Players get one point for each player who chooses the wrong definition that they wrote. The dasher gets three points if no one gets the correct answer at all. Think of the side-splitting laughs you’ll get from this fun game.





Criss White writes about entertainment and party topics. To check out some more party games and baby shower game ideas, visit Baby Shower Ideas.

Making Business Card Magnets at Home

Just about everyone who has a job or their own business has business cards. These are a good way to keep your contact info handy for potential clients, partners, and other people. Not only are they portable and inexpensive, but they are also a very convenient tool to promote yourself or your business.

Unfortunately, however, people are often bombarded with business cards and it is easy to get lost in the pile, particularly when meeting people at networking events. To make your business card stand out, it is important to try to make it as unique as possible. This can be done with professional designs, unusual shapes, and shiny or reflective elements on the card. However, one simple way to make you card unique is to make a magnetic business card.

Making the magnets is really simple and it only takes a computer software program and some materials. First, make ready the design on the computer. Use Microsoft Word or Adobe Illustrator which are software that are not only popular but are also very user friendly which produces great results.

Get into a Business Card Template and start from there. Choose the color, design, text and design based on the theme of the party. Once the design is made, make sure to edit and print out a copy on a piece of paper to check what the finished product can look like. Once all the editing is done, there are two ways to have the magnets made.

You can always send the electronic file to a professional printer which can do the project in a matter of days, complete with lamination and delivery. However, know that the printers have a minimum order. Some don’t accept projects with less than a hundred of these magnets and if you are only asking them to make 5 or ten, then they could refuse or if they don’t the price can be really expensive.

You can also print these out on your home printer. Simply get some ready to use business card magnets which come in several in a pack. Print out the design you made on cardstock from your own printer. Once the print is out, cut out neatly. Place each card on the magnetic metal by fixing it on firmly on the peel off sticker that comes with the magnet. Once it is bound check for any bubbles and then laminate it if desired.

You can also purchase magnetic sheets that you can print the magnets on directly. In fact, you can make your own unique shapes if you want. Stencil the design on the sheet and cut out with an exacto knife. Laminate the card and the project is done!

Making business card magnets is really simple and it can be a great hobby. You can even make save the date magnets, homemade refrigerator magnets, or baby shower magnets. Turn your hobby into a business or just make a gift for all the friends using your new skills.

Make Your Own Glass Coasters

Any arts and craft hobby are not just good creativity or stress outlets but rather, they can create very functional everyday or special items, can be great gift items, or for some, these are income generating activities as well. Glass coasters can either be used by your family, be given as gifts or favors such as elegant wedding coasters, or can be sold to create extra income. Creating coasters can be fun and there are many ways on how you can make them.

Used tin cans can be used as coasters. You can cut the top cover and then just create a softer edge by placing, cord, cloth or lace on the edges to avoid cuts by the thin aluminum. You can also cover the entire tin coaster if you think that the tin will not be able to hold up water repeatedly. The cover can disguise any trace of rust that it might develop.

Another funkier alternative would be floppy discs or CDs. You can cut them up as well into smaller sizes since they are also already round anyway, and you should cover the edges. For a more personalized coaster, you can use a CD sticker label to cover up the CD and then cut them out just on the right size to show the print. The print can either be the photo, the name or any image representative of the person who will use it or who will receive it.

Used cork or vinyl that you can find laying on the stock area can be used as well. Cut them up into small round shapes and you can either cover them up using lace or ribbon, or you can use acrylic pain to hand paint them.

Creating your own coasters need not cost you much and it is no rocket science either. It is actually one of the easiest arts and craft activities you can do. In fact, the items and materials mentioned here are readily available in most homes and you just need a few minutes to measure them, cut them out, and design them.

All you need is just a little creativity, ingenuity, and maybe a few minutes finding recyclable materials in your home to create art that’s beautiful and functional. Coasters can protect your table top and at the same time it can beautify it as well. Make sure your colors complement your table and other cutleries and test the coasters against accidental slips and water spills.

Make your Own Personalized Wedding Invitation

Your wedding invitation, wedding place cards, and favors are just some things you can personally make. While you can source them out easily to suppliers, you can cut your expenses to nearly half for these items if you make them yourself. The materials are all readily available and you can easily design and print them on your home computer.

A good quality printer and paper will make for professional quality invitations. Choose paper that has the color that is the same as the color motif of your wedding. You can also choose whether to use scented or unscented paper. Have it run on normal ink mode, instead of economy, and replace the cartridge before they produce invitations that have lines on them due to low ink.

Go online and there are templates for common wordings and poems used in invitations. You can personalize and make your own vows or love quotes that you can use. If you are having a themed wedding, you can use either the classic calligraphy or a font reflecting your theme as well, whether you have a sporty golf-themed wedding or an exciting country wedding.

Insert your invitations into paper envelopes. Again, they can either be scented or unscented. They also come in different sizes, whether you have a card sized invitation or a bigger one. Alternatively, you can use mesh, bottles, or cloth for the packaging. They are a refreshing change from the typical paper envelope, making your wedding all the more exciting for your guests as they look forward to more unique items, activities, and pleasant surprises.

You can put charms, small flowers, or other embellishments on your packaging for a totally professional look. A heart charm will work well, but for themed weddings, you can use a small pot, a golf club pendant or a basketball pendant if you are having a garden, golf or basketball themed wedding.

Some brides would rather make their own wedding invitations not because they want to save on cost, but rather they want to show everyone that they have put their time and effort into making this wedding as personalized and as memorable as it can be.
Creating wedding invitations requires only a few basic materials. Allow ample time to finalize the design, print them, and send them out on time. Your guests will be amazed by the professional looking invitation made in the convenience of your own home.