DIY DOMINOES

When it comes to playing games, my family is pretty much divided. Some love it, others hate it.

I'm not talking about manipulative, back-stabbing kind of games, but jigsaws (meh), uno (yay) and monopoly (oh dear god no!).

My dad will play just about anything, my sister anything that involves math or, you know, brains, and my brother will play anything from which he can come out the winner.

My favorites include role playing games such as The Werewolves of Miller's Hollow, or card games like Cards Against Humanity.

If not for bad losers, playing a good game can be complicated when not actually having the game at hand. You know, most games (I'm thinking board games in particular) can't be played spontaneously at a camp site or on the beach, because they require an entire equipment - boards and dices, cards and tokens, notes, hats, blindfolds and whips.

Guys, I'm thinking of Pin the Tail on the Donkey and Crack the Whip here! Obviously.

So today I am sharing with you my most spontaneous game of Fifty Shades of Dominoes. Uhm, I mean, just Dominoes!

If you've never played, I urge you to give it a try.

Yes, I too thought dominoes involved simply watching somebody carefully place dominoes one right next to the other and then ha ha knocking them back down.

But no!

As a matter of fact, there are several sets of rules on how to play actual games with these little polka-dotted stones! - and they're pretty fun too!

Plus, with a little more than a black marker, you can make your own - as Shakira said, whenever, wherever.

As you do (or not; maybe it's just me), one day, I found myself in the woods randomly collecting rocks in different shapes and sizes. I tried finding stones with a similar size at first, but that turned out to be nearly impossible, and much too time-consuming for an impromptu activity. So I stuck with the irregularity which I now love.

And after a quick makeover, the stones were ready to go.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
- 28 rocks or pebbles
- a thick permanent marker
- this template
- optional: acrylic paint and a paint brush

For one domino set, you will need to gather 28 pebbles or rocks. Rinse under lukewarm water to remove any dirt.

Optionally, paint the rocks with acrylic paint of your choice. Let dry completely.

Using the permanent marker (or acrylic paint and a pointed paint brush), draw a black line across the center of each rock.

Add the dots according to this template.

You'll notice that I didn't bother to paint my rocks before adding the dots. I like to bring a bit of nature into my home. But with a little more time on your hands, think of all the colors you could make these! Start with a colorful base coat like mint green, and add dots in gold or silver! Pop them in a cute bag or a jar, and they make for a perfect little gift.

HOW TO PLAY:
There are many different ways to play, so here's the most basic and easy way.

Start by turning all dominoes over face-down and shuffling them so that no one knows the location of any combination of dots.

Each player draws one domino and adds up all the dots. The person with the heaviest hand goes first.

To start the game, each player now draws five dandom dominoes. All stones are placed face-down in front of each player so that the others cannot see the value of the other players' dominoes, but every player can see how many dominoes remain in the other players' hands.

The player going first places a first domino of his choice from his hand onto the playing field. As the turn passes from player to player, dominoes with a matching number of dots are added to the "open" ends of the layout.

If a player cannot make a move, he draws a domino from the pile and misses a turn.

A game ends when a player has played all of his dominoes.

When playing a multi-round game, after each, the losers add up the number of dots from their remaining dominoes as penalty points. After the number of games agreed upon beforehand have been completed, the player with the lowest number of penalty points wins overall.