by Richelle Naegle

I don’t know about you, but I love to attend scrapbook retreats. Around these parts, we just refer to them as “craft day.” Generally, we meet at the host’s house, bring our craft materials, swap ideas, eat a lot of delicious food, and most importantly, enjoy each other’s company. Craft retreat games always make for a fun time.

Twice a year we do a whole girls’ weekend! NO husbands, NO kids, just a fun weekend of crafting! Generally speaking, everyone comes to scrapbook, but we often have people sewing, painting, etc. The next craft retreat is at my house so I thought it might be fun to play games that fit the theme of the event. Here are a few that I found for us to play:

Swap & Shop

This is a fun and cheap way to shop! Have everyone bring material, embellishments, supplies, etc., that they will share. All these items should be placed on a communal table. You can take turns or have a free-for-all. Either way, everyone will have a good time getting rid of old supplies and claiming supplies they will use.

Also, you will probably end up with supplies no one will claim, so consider donating the remaining supplies to your local school, church, or other organization.

Scrapbook Bingo

This is just like regular bingo, but instead of numbers, the squares contain paper craft-related things, such as buttons, ribbon, five pictures, one picture, teal, and purple. Everyone tracks what’s been called out, and you mark off your Bingo board accordingly.

Pictured is a sample of a board you could make, unlike regular bingo.

For prizes, you don’t have to go too big. It could be a little knick-knack or some supply you no longer want.

Show Me a Picture

For this game, you list photos that most people would have: a bride, a baby, an animal/pet, a park, a national park, people kissing, etc. At random times during the retreat, you yell out, “Show me a picture of ________!” and whoever delivers first wins a prize.

Pass the Finished Hat

This game will not only encourage people to finish layout designs but to “move it, move it!” Sometimes, we get really chatty and forget to craft. When someone completes a page, they get the hat. Once the next page is completed, the hat changes hands. Whoever has the hat when the timer goes off (set to random times by the host) wins a prize. It’s like a hot potato, except you want the potato.

Embellishment Baggie Challenge

I have played this one before, and it’s always a lot of fun. You put random things in a baggie, like buttons, brads, ribbons, action wobbles, etc., for all your guests. Everyone makes a scrapbook layout using those embellishments. It’s always a blast to get creative and use decorations you wouldn’t otherwise use.

The Sketch Challenge

This one is always fun. I have seen many blogs that do contests like this: pick a sketch and have everyone make a layout based on it (you can find lots of sketches on Pinterest), and then everyone votes on a winner.

It doesn’t have to be competition; you can also print a few sketches and let everyone choose which ones to copy. Here are a few samples I found on Pinterest:

Have you played fun games at scrapbooking retreats? I would love to hear which ones you prefer, so I can incorporate them when I host to make my next ladies retreat a great one.

Don’t forget to save on all your favorite paper crafting supplies. We have everything you could possibly need for your projects, from patterned cardstock to electronic die-cutters.

Happy creating!