Particularly good for outdoor family events with lots of children attending, this game will keep the nippers quiet for a while!īuild how high you can build your wooden block tower before the tumbling tower blocks collapse to the ground, this classic garden game is is outdoor family fun. If you take this project on, we’d love to see.Bring some fun to your event or special occasion with these giant 'jenga' bricks. Of course, the set can still be used to play by traditional rules if you’re not up for an extra challenge! What difference does the YBH rule make? It makes the game twice as hard! On each turn, a player’s possible moves are cut by 50% since they can only move their own blocks. So what’s that twist we mentioned? Each player picks a color and can only touch or move blocks of that color. Oh, and a vintage garbage headboard too! Needless to say, we’re fans. Nein! Nein! Nein! OK Fine by Clark+Kensington has been put to use on our dresser-turned-kitchen island, our original DIY porch swing (also a quick and easy quarantine DIY) and our sliding back doors (some incredible kitchen before and after photos in that one, BTW). You might recognize the pale pink as Benjamin Moore Odessa Pink from our recent bathroom board and batten project! The blue/black color is also oldie but a goodie. of all 54 blocks is sanded smooth and your hands are numb from the vibration of the sander, it’s time to paint the ends! We picked two complimentary colors that we had on hand and painted both ends of 27 blocks (half of the 54 total) in each color. If you’re looking for the easiest and most simple version of this project, stack the blocks in your Radio Flyer and call it done! If you’d like to add a bit of visual interest and open up the possibility of an alternate version of the standard Jenga game, it’s time to paint! 3| Paint, Paint, Paint We sanded a small bevel on the corners and made sure to give each freshly cut end a thorough sanding as well. The combination turned out to be a happy medium between smoothing the surfaces of the wood and removing any rough spots. If there’s not a power sander in your tool arsenal already, this project would likely be a good excuse to invest in one! We used 220 grit paper on medium speed with our random orbital sander (similar, ours is discontinued). Sanding removes any pesky splinters and ensures that your pieces slide as smoothly as possible. This is the most time-consuming step of the project, but also the most important. We’ll recycle our scraps as kindling for our next Tree House bonfire! 2| Sand, Sand, Sand. These only have the potential to snag on other pieces and make the game much less fun. Remember, a nominal 2″ x 3″ actually measures 1.5″ x 2.5″, so we’re shooting for exactly 7.5″ per piece.Īs cuts are made, it’s a good idea to remove any nasty knots or crummy boards. The goal here is for the length of one cut board to equal the exact width of three boards stacked side by side. We find that any time we’re making multiple cuts of the same length, clamping a slug to the miter saw’s fence will speed things up significantly! Just be sure to make a test cut or two to ensure things are measuring accurately. The first step in the process is to cut all of the boards to 7.5″ length.

Two different colors of paint (optional).

It might not be a bad idea to also grab an extra board or two as backup!) (Note: Be sure to select the straightest boards with the fewest knots.

Five or more 2″ x 3″ x 8′ boards cut to 7.5″ pieces.

A set made from 2″ x 3″ lumber is still substantial in size and measures 27″ tall before the first move! 2″ x 3″ lumber is also lighter and easier to store and transport, so it seemed like the best fit for us! Supplies Needed

Many of the giant Jenga tutorials we were able to find online suggested using 2″ x 4″ boards, but in doing a bit of research, we found that a 2″ x 3″ board reflects the scale of original Jenga (1.5cm x 2.5cm x 7.5cm) exactly. Or you could spend a fun afternoon working in the garage and put the $110 you’ve saved toward food and drink to enjoy while you marvel at your woodworking skills. We still play classic Jenga at our Tree House frequently, but we decided it was time for us to create a giant Jenga game to enjoy this summer outdoors. Jenga games at Vargo family reunions got notoriously competitive, with a running record of max tower height scrawled inside the travel-worn box. Original Jenga is a simple and fun game that led to hours and hours of family fun throughout our respective childhoods.

We’re all spending a lot more time at home right now, so yard games will be a favorite past-time this summer! Today we’re outlining three steps for a simple $10 DIY giant Jenga game – but with an added twist.

Oversized jenga set