2 August, 2019
Weird Sh*t Bingo
Comments : 1 Posted in : Girls Just Want to Have Fun, Random Crafts on by : TetonTrekker Tags: antiquing, Bingo, garage sales, scavenger hunt, Thrifting, weirdshitbingo, yard sales
#weirdshitbingo - Jump to How to Play the Game
Download Cards: https://www.etsy.com/shop/TetonTrekke
Join the fun: https://www.facebook.com/groups/weirdshitbingo
Weird Shit Bingo is a second hand item scavenger hunt. No need to purchase the objects you find, but photographic evidence is mandatory.
This is a PG-13 game - Most people 13 and over have some idea in their mind of what these things are, even if they are wrong, this game is about interpretation, therefore they are right.
How Did I Come up With This Sh*t?
Several months ago I ran across a Facebook Group, "Weird Secondhand Finds That Just Need To Be Shared", and found my tribe. The admins do an awesome job keeping it friendly and politics free. Before I joined the group, there must have been some discussion on making a bingo game of it because a member posted a single bingo card shortly after I joined. I printed it and took it on an outing with my Yard Sale Bud, Irene.
After our game of Bingo it was clear that it would be more fun if we were looking for different items. We also needed some standard rules to add to the fun and make it more competitive.
I got this grand idea to make my own cards out of a car bingo game I had in my stash of stuff. The car bingo game windows were WAY too small for my old eyes, so I started searching the net. I found these Jumbo Bingo Cards that would be perfect! I could not wait for my order to arrive!
The project took me what seemed like FOREVER to complete due to trial and error, shopping for the perfect supplies, preparing the PDF cards, taking photos, writing down the instructions that worked, writing this blog, and finishing the YouTube vlog. If you decide to make your own cards, it should take several hands-on hours to complete a set of cards with the instructions below. There is a lot of drying time between sessions though.
Should you decide to make the cards why not invite a friend and split the work, cost, and cards... then go out and play a game! If you are not that enthusiastic, or want to play a round before investing your time, you can just download the PDF and play a game directly from it. (The PDF download is just above the instruction below.)
How to Play the Game:
Supplies:
Bingo Cards - Available for download on my Etsy Store -
https://www.etsy.com/shop/TetonTrekker
Clipboards - You can probably find at yard sales, or get some in advance at Amazon.
Pens or pencils - Don't forget sharpeners for the pencils.
Everything on the cards is possible to find, but many will be hard to find. You will have more fun it you use your imagination to interpret the items you are looking for. Be careful though, if you interpret too loosely you may get vetoed.
All items must be second hand, found in garage sales, estate sales, thrift shops, antique stores, etc. No new items or items not for sale allowed. However, the "Free" bin is allowed.
Before you get started, do yourself a favor and download this handy Yard Sale Treasure Map app: http://yardsaletreasuremap.com
(I do not get anything for posting this link, it's just too handy to not share.)
Basic Rules:
- Draw for cards. Everyone gets a different card.
- Everyone shall buy a weird trinket to award the winner.
- No Object shall be just an ordinary object.
- All Items must have photographic proof, video for musical instrument bonus.
- Each object may be used as only one entry.
- All Items must be found during the game time period.
“Holy Grail” Rule:
- A Vomit Clock is a wild card.
Veto Rule:
- Everyone in group gets 1 veto to squash an opponent’s item if it is too ordinary.
- Any Item with an earned bonus cannot be vetoed.
You may decide on some rules of your own prior to starting the game. Let me know what rules you added in the comments.
Prior to starting the game decide on what constitutes a win.
Ideas for wins:
- First Bingo
- Most Bingos
- Most Items found
- Ugliest Taxidermy Bonus is the tie-breaker
- OR each person can award their trinket to the person (other than self) they think is the winner under their own criteria.
I envision a group of 10 friends meeting up for breakfast on a Saturday morning at their favorite coffee joint. Over coffee, draw for their cards and divide into teams, one team per car.. Decide on what time the game is over and a place to meet and compare Bingo to declare the winners.
Each team would get a win for the most Bingos (first bingo is the tie-breaker), and individual wins would be decided by each player by awarding their trinket to who they think won. Everyone would pitch in to buy the winning team lunch or a drink.
I set up a private Facebook group for teams to post their entries. This group is for game play only and for 18 and over but I require PG 13 photos. This will allow teams to play virtually and comment on other team entries.
Join the fun: https://www.facebook.com/groups/weirdshitbingo
When posting you photo in the group, please hashtag your entries:
- Team Name (or your chosen hashtag).
- City & State where item found.
Make sure to type the bingo tile you are using it for.
Example: #teamjulie #JacksonWy Haunted Item
Don't get us kicked off of Facebook! Watch how you word things and be sure your photo that are over PG 13 are censored with a little edit please. If your entry is rated R it will be removed and vetoed.
Definitions for Newbies:
Grandma wasn't so innocent: Turtles with Human Genitalia.
- Adopted Family Picture: A photo of somebody's family member, the older the photo the better, that is being sold to strangers. Also a fun FaceBook group.
- BDSM: An abbreviation for Bondage and Discipline (BD), Dominance and Submission (DS), and Sadism and Masochism (SM). (There is likely a FaceBook group, I don't want to know about it!)
- Return of the Thing: A second hand item that has been repurposed or made into something else. Also a fun Facebook Group.
- Frankensteined Doll: One doll pieced together from many dolls.
- Uranium Glass: Glass which has had uranium added to a glass mix before melting for coloration. It glows under UV Black Light. Also a fun FaceBook group.
- Vomit Anything: Anything suspended in resin. Also a fun FaceBook group.
If you need another definition please comment on this post.
Transforming my Cards - Trial and Error
The sizing of the card openings were perfect, however the back was raw and unfinished cardboard. So I started looking on the net for ways to paint cardboard without warping it. Gesso seemed to be the common fix. My plan was to paint both sides of the card chalkboard black, Mod Podging the instructions on the back, and stenciling the name of the game on the front.
I started by painting just one card's back with the Gesso to see how well it worked. FAIL! The cardboard did warp. After it was dry I painted the front with the black chalkboard paint. It took two coats to get full coverage over the green and was messy to try to color within the lines. I painted the back black over the Gesso and let it dry overnight. Most of the warping went back to the original position but it still looked a bit off, the coverage was not perfect and it looked like a caveman did it. I ended up only painting the top part of the card and it looked much nicer.
While the cards were drying I played with the stencils to come up with an efficient plan. I had purchased the stencils at the Dollar Store, they were stick on reusable letters about the correct size for the cards. However when I tried to line the words up it became clear they were a tad too wide and were a bear to work with, so I bagged that idea. Then it hit me, one of the categories has to do with crimes, so I cut letters out of an old magazine I had laying around. I added embellishments to each card so they would all look different, giving the player an easy way to know which card is theirs.
To Sh*t or not to Sh*t, That is the Question
Since I knew I would be blogging this, I gave some thought into the name of the game, was it used by a big company? The first thing I did was google 'Weird Shit Bingo", and I learned something I didn't really need to know, Chicken-shit bingo is a thing! (Google it!! OMG). Good news, Weird Shit Bingo is not a name of a marketed game. YAY!
My other concern was can I say "Shit" on the internet without getting banned? I Googled it... Guess what... There is a plethora of information on the internet about the word shit. Wikipedia has a whole page dedicated to shit thanks to George Carlin and his 7 deadly words. Yup, a shit-load of shit about shit.
I found that as long as I keep it in good fun, or it is appropriate for the content, and I'm not vulgar, I'll be fine. And it is probably not the best idea to use the full word "shit" in my titles. So, "sh*t" for my titles and "shit" for my content. How's that shit?
Composing a List of Weird Shit
I purchased 10 Jumbo Cards, 25 spaces each including the center "free" spot. That is 250 squares to fill! There were a few fun items I wanted to be the on every card, so that helped but YIKES!!! So I solicited my tribe for ideas and copied all of them into a spreadsheet. The discussion was as fun as the game! I ended up with 214 ideas for items and used most of them.
The Holy Grail of Weird Shit shopping is a Vomit Clock, I decided a Vomit Clock as a wild card would be fun. And any "Weird Shit Bingo" game would not be complete without a "Vomit" item, and they are easy to find, "Vomit Anything" would be the center of every card instead of the "Free Spot".
I wanted to make sure everyone who is playing was picking stuff up, trying stuff on, looking in books, pockets, etc. I spent several hours organizing the list by category and difficulty to make sure the cards were all balanced. Putting it all together was a little like a logic puzzle to make sure I did not have 2 similar items on any given card.
I’m a musician so I had to add a musical instrument on each card, with a bonus for playing it. All the cards have A musical Instrument, A call from a decade, something haunted, taxidermy, and Turtles/Frogs with Human Genitalia. Then I added one item from each of the categories. The cards came out nice and balanced, and difficult but not impossible to bingo.
How to make your own WSB cards:
Printed Materials
This PDF allows you to play without making cards, however reusable cards are more fun and always ready to play if you keep them in your car.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/TetonTrekker
- Print on nice paper stock but not super thick.
(Thin copy paper may try to curl in humid environments.) - A variety of pastel colors makes each card more unique.
- Use an ink-jet printer. Laser printers sometimes deposit ink in a way that can scrape off over time when opening and closing the windows.
The Mr Chips Jumbo Bingo cards can be purchased in smaller quantities at the link below. (Today 10 are $26.99.)
Weird S--- Bingo Cards
Equipment
- Brush for Mod Podge
- Sponge type paint brush
- Scissors
- Pinking Shears
- Exacto Knife
- 1" Square paper punch
- Craft Tweezers
Materials
- 10 MR CHIPS Bingo Cards Slide Shutter for Senior and Kids - Jumbo
https://amzn.to/32QZc67 - Mod Podge
- Tacky Glue (Craft Glue)
- 1 Glue Stick
- 1 or 2 Old Magazines You will be cutting letters from them
- Black Craft Paint
- 10 Assorted Buttons Each a different color
- 10 Pieces Fabirc Ribbon Assorted colors, cut slightly longer than the bingo card is wide.
- 1 to 2 Rolls Clear Stick on Shelf Paper Need 18" x 1.5 yd
Printed Materials
- 1 set Weird Shit Bingo PDF Cards
https://www.etsy.com/shop/TetonTrekker
Instructions
Painting the Cards
- Using a dry sponge brush carefully paint the top of the card with black craft paint to cover the words, making a straight line across the top. (Later the line will be covered by a ribbon to give it a finished look.)
- Let completely dry then add a second coat. If some of the green is still showing through, let completely dry then add another coat.
Back of Card
- Cut the rules from the bottom of the printed PDF card.
- Trim edges of the rules with pinking shears.
- Use glue stick on edges of the paper rules then stick it onto the back of the bingo card.
- For each card, cut a piece of the clear shelf paper a bit larger than the card.
- Apply the glue stick or Mod Podge to the edges of the back of the card, from edge to about a ½" in from edge, around the entire card.The glue stick dries faster but uses a lot of the stick per card.The Mod Podge is messier and takes longer to dry but the finished look is much nicer.
- Take the backing off the shelf paper and lay sticky side up on your table.
- Put the card, back down, onto the sticky side of shelf paper. Press down with your hands.
- Turn over and rub any bubbles out.
- When the glue/Mod Podge has dried trim the exposed edges off the shelf paper, using either the Exacto knife or scissors.
Game Title
- Lock your cat in out of the room for the rest of the project.
- Clip a piece of ribbon a bit longer than the card is wide and lay it out over the paint line. (do NOT glue down yet.)
- Cut enough letters from the magazine to spell "WEIRD SHIT BING" for each card, the buttons will be the "O". Letters should fit between ribbon and top of card but be random in font.I found it handy to sort them in a deviled egg rack.
- Lay out the letters using, a button for the O, across top of card for your desired look.
- Set the letters, ribbon, and button aside.
- Brush a think coart of Mod Podge over the painted area and about a ¼" over the line where the ribbon will go.
- Place the letters back in their positions. If you work fast and dont press the letters in the Mod Podge will allow you to move them a little until you get them just right.
- Gently press all the letters down so there are no bubbles and the edges are down.
- Cover with a medium coat of Modge Podge.
- Place ribbon in place and press into the Mod Podge.
- Let completely dry.
- Check with fingers that there are now loose edges. If needed add second coat of Mod Podge, careful not to cover ribbon, and let completely dry.
- Trim the ribbon edges.
- Glue the button into the "O" position with Tacky Glue.
Add the items to the Slots
- I highly recommend doing this part one card at at time.
- Do not mix up the tiles from one card to another, you will not have an even playing field.
- Be sure your hands are clean and dry while handling the tiles.
- Cut the grid into strips.
- Use the 1" hole punch to cut out the squares. Be sure to center up as much as possible by turning the punch over and looking through the window.Doubling up with a blank strip of paper, a bit wider, helped get cleaner edges and it was easier to fine tune the position before punching the square.
- Using the Bingo Card PDF as a guide match the tiles in the matching windows.
- Pull down the window a bit and tuck a corner of the paper tile under it.
- Position each paper tile, using the craft tweezers to keep one corner up. Use the glue stick to adhere the bottom ½ of the tile inside the bingo card window. Be sure to get both bottom corners.Be careful not to glue the window slide. The slide will hold the top of the tile in place.
- Let completely dry with all the windows on the card open.
Optional
- Put small buttons, using the same color you used on the cards, in a small jewelry bag. When starting the game, each player blindly draws a button to see what card they will be using.
- Purchase a hand held UV black light (under $10) and keep with the game. The person who gets the card with the "Uranium Glass" carries the light for the day, https://amzn.to/2yvUXir
- While out shopping second hand things look for the perfect "weird" case to keep cards in.
Notes
Mom, wife, computer geek, web designer, musician, board member, ski bum, bicyclist, camper, glamper, fishing woman, treasure hunter, bookkeeper, office wizard, blogger, vlogger, foodie, and Pampered Chef Independent Consultant, trekking through life in Jackson Hole, Wyoming
One thought on : 1
I keep forgetting my bingo card!! This is fun – Thanks for sharing at My Big Fat Menopausal Life’s Share the Wealth Party. Your participation is greatly appreciated!! Have a fabulous week.