I’m participating in the Fantastic Fifty Fall Blog Hop, so with party season approaching, I thought it would be fun to share 3 amazingly easy party games to wow your group.

 

 

They were a HUGE hit and my group couldn’t stop talking about how much fun they had! Now these would work with any adult group, but my victims guests were Seniors, just like me. Before I came up with these brilliant fun game suggestions, I looked to Google for inspiration. 

But doing a Google search was practically pointless, I found. It was either too elementary (Pin the Tail on the Donkey), or the old favorites like “Charades, Twister, or

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spin the Bottle.” As you can imagine, these wouldn’t work for a group of Seniors who:

• can’t sit on the floor (they may never get up again)
• can’t contort their bodies like “Twister” (heaven forbid)
• we’re a little too old for “Pin the Tail on the Donkey” or “Musical Chairs.” (with age goes the balance and the energy.)

More searches, which were fruitless. I googled up party games for adults, and got racy games with sexual overtones. Didn’t want that either!

 

 

So I put my thinking cap on. “What did I have a lot of?” I mused. Well, as a picker, I have a lot of vintage junk, and I have a lot of hats. I’ve sold hats, and I have my beloved goofy hat collection! Germs of an idea began to form, and I came up with the 3 games below:

• The Tray Game
• The Hat Game
• The Bidding Game

The Tray Game

The Tray Game is very easy, and totally relies on the power of observation to play it.

Preparation Ahead of Time 

• Select a large tray.
• Go on a scavenger hunt in your house, gathering up a collection of small objects.

What I used: a battery, matchbook, spoon, Sharpie, pencil, letter, small book, small light bulb, cassette, piece of chain, bottle of pills, etc.

To make it challenging: Use small objects, which blend in with each other better, whereas a large object will stand out more.

• Place all objects in the tray, scattering them out so all can be seen fairly easily, yet fill it up enough so that you have a LOT in the tray. 

The Game:

• Cover with a towel.
• On party night, hand out paper & pencils.
• Bring the tray out in front of your guests.
• Allow them to look at it for 1 minute, then re-cover again. A timer is helpful.
• They will fill out what objects they remember seeing on the tray. Usually you get about 6-8 responses. The person getting the most right wins.
• I give out prizes for more fun and incentive. 

Suggested Prizes

Small box or bag of candy, nuts, specialty cookies or crackers etc. 

The Hat Game

This is another game relying on the power of observation. Enter the goofy hats, which were perfect for this game. Most people enjoy dressing up a bit or wearing hats, but they wouldn’t be caught dead wearing one if everybody else isn’t doing it. In this game, you are giving them permission to be a little goofy, and my group had a ball wearing them, taking photos, and putting themselves on Facebook. 

Preparation Ahead of Time:

• Host and Hostess select a goofy hat to wear for the evening. The Hostess hat needs to be flat and unnoticeable. 

  

   

• Have a collection of hats by the door….the goofier, the better.
• Wearing his goofy hat, the Host greets each person at the door telling them to select a hat to wear for the evening, and explains the rules.

 

 

The Object:

The guests are to observe what the hostess does throughout the evening. When she removes her hat, (as unobtrusively as possible), then everyone else is to follow suit. I wait till the evening is well advanced, usually during the first or second game. By that time, guests are having fun, and forget they’re even wearing a hat, so the last person to remove his/her hat is the loser. You can have the loser win the prize, or the first person to remove their hat be the winner. However you want to do it is fine. 

What if You Don’t Have a Goofy Hat Collection

Go to the Dollar Store, pick up some party hats, and draw on goofy faces or glue on googly eyes. You can really get goofy with this step! Go pick up hats at the thrift store and decorate them. 

The Bidding Game

The object of this game, is to auction off prizes you’ve put in paper sacks. They bid with play money. The auctioneer (you) needs to be animated and endeavor to get the bidders going without telling them what’s in the bags.

When I realized that I, a slow-talking, soft-spoken, quiet, laid-back introvert, would have to become animated, I was a little chagrined (and I made up these rules,) but you can do it!! If I can do it, anybody can!

This game is great for me because I can get rid of a little junk. It can be anything…white elephant gifts you’re planning to donate, or things you don’t need anymore, or extra nice things…whatever. 

This game can go on as long as you have prizes to give out. 

That’s my 3 games, but here’s~

One More Popular Activity for Groups

I guess you could call this the Talking Game…LOL

Everybody loves to talk about themselves, so… 

• Develop a list of Trivia Questions
• Cut them up into single sentences
• Fold each up into small squares
• Pass out to the group to answer one-by-one.
• Or you could give everyone the same question, such as “What was Your Most Embarrassing Moment?” 

Which is your favorite, and which can you see yourself doing? Do you have more suggestions?

And now, don’t forget to visit all the other blogs below! You’re sure to come away inspired!

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