game on!

From habitat magazine - issue 35, bright ideas

Family young and old will be entertained with lawn games that can brighten up your day.

‘Tis the season to spend time with family and friends outdoors and with any gathering it pays to have a few colourful tricks up your sleeve to keep everyone in good spirits. While you are waiting for the sausages to cook at a family barbecue or the turkey to come out of the oven, keep everyone entertained with a few fun lawn games. Sometimes the best memories are made in our own backyards. Let the games begin!

Croquet, you stay

Take nana’s old croquet set from the back of the shed and refresh it ready for a fun lawn game with Resene paints and wood stains. The object of the game is to hit the ball through a course of gates.

To repair the mallets, sand down any imperfections on the mallets using coarse sandpaper followed by fine sandpaper. Wipe clean with a damp cloth before staining with two coats of Resene Woodsman wood stain. Apply masking tape to the middle of the handle and paint stripes on each mallet in two coats of one colour. To refresh the balls, paint a large circle of colour on each ball using the same four colours used on the mallets. Apply two coats.

Giant checkers

A game of checkers has never looked bigger or brighter than when it has been given a bold Resene Colorwood Apollo Blue and Resene Half Black White checkerboard colour scheme.

You will need:

• Plywood square, 1000mm x 1000mm (7mm thick)
• Masking tape
• Resene Colorwood
• Resene paintbrushes
• Resene StainLock
• Resene Aquaclear
• 24 jar lids or circular counters
• Resene testpots in your choice of colours

Stain the plywood square in Resene Colorwood. Wipe away any excess stain with a rag or cloth. Create a border 60mm wide with the masking tape. Use the tape to create a grid of squares equally spaced apart, from top to bottom and left to right. There should be four squares along each line. Each square on the board measures 110mm. Paint the squares in a contrasting colour. Once dry, remove the masking tape. Repeat the above, except this time covering the painted squares. Once completely dry and all masking tape has been removed, apply Resene Aquaclear to seal the checkerboard. To make the counters, apply Resene StainLock to the jar lids. Paint the lids in two different colours – 12 of each.

Dynamic dominoes

You can play this jumbo version of the classic tile game on a garden lawn or sandy beach. Dominoes is a great way to use up leftover timber offcuts. Keep your tiles together as a set by storing them in an old Resene paint bucket or a crate painted in your favourite Resene colours.

You will need:

• Pine plank, 115mm wide and 18mm thick
• Jig saw
• Resene Colorwood in your favourite colour
• Resene testpots in your choice of colours
• Paintbrushes
• Resene Aquaclear

Cut the pieces to 230mm lengths. For a full set, cut 28 pieces. Sand the cut sides and carefully wipe away any dust with a cloth. Stain the pieces of wood in Resene Colorwood. Wipe away any excess stain with a rag or cloth. Rule a centre line in the middle of the domino and paint. Once dry, paint the dots. Visit www.habitatbyresene.com/lawngames to see the different combinations that need to be painted. Seal the pieces using Resene Aquaclear.

Ring around

The game of quoits (also known as ring toss) has been entertaining families since medieval times when it was played with horseshoes.

You will need:

• 9 clean, empty glass bottles
• Resene testpots in your choice of Resene colours
• Paintbrushes
• Rope
• Hi-tack tape, such as gaffer tape
• Resene Waterborne Smooth Surface Sealer
• Crate to store the bottles

Prime the bottles using Resene Waterborne Smooth Surface Sealer and leave to dry. Paint the bottles in various colours using Resene testpots. Cut the rope to 160mm and tape ends together to create a ring. Repeat until you’ve made at least 10 rings. Paint the rings with Resene testpots and leave them to dry. Complete the game by giving the crate a lick of paint.

Tip: Create a celebration colour scheme and paint decorations, such as table runners, parking signs, crackers, piñata and party-favour bags, in colours to match your lawn games. Make bunting using leftover wallpaper – we used Resene Wallpaper Collection KEN504, Resene Wallpaper Collection FJ40508 and Resene Wallpaper Collection E378049.

More online: For how-to videos and more ideas for your next celebration, visit www.habitatbyresene.com/lawngames.

Projects: Sarah Kolver, Leigh Stockton
Images: Bryce Carleton

Want to get your own free copy of future issues of habitat magazine?

Printed copies of habitat highlights are available from late March 2024 at Resene ColorShops and resellers, while stocks last. You can view back issues of habitat magazine online.

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