Make A Bean Bag Toss Game

Supplies

Pockets from old jeans
Scissors
Gloss acrylic paint
Paint brush
Straight pins
Sewing machine and thread

Dry beans or split peas

6", 8", 10", and 12" Terra Cotta saucers

Instructions

Sew the bean bags

Now get ready to make the easiest bean bags ever. Grab your old jeans and trim around the back pockets with a pair of scissors, right along the pocket’s edges. For the top of the pocket, just cut straight across the top. You’ll end up with pouch that’s already sewn shut for you on three sides.

If you want to decorate your pockets, take a few minutes now to paint them using the Apple Barrel gloss paint. Since I was making this game for the Fourth of July, I painted a star on each pocket.

Now fill the pockets about 2/3 full of the dry beans. Don’t make them too full, or else you won’t be able to sew them shut.

Use two straight pins to hold the top closed, then sew it shut with one or two rows of stitches on the sewing machine.

That’s it. Your bean bags are done! If you don’t have a sewing machine, you could sew the pockets shut by hand. (Or you might even get away with using hot glue, but I don’t think they would last very long!)

Paint the saucers

You can paint the saucers in any color or design you like, to match the occasion. I painted mine in a simple red, white, and blue design. I painted scores on each saucer, with the lowest score for the largest (easiest to hit) saucer, and the highest score for the smallest (hardest to hit) saucer.

The finished game

To play the game, just line up the saucers with the largest one closest to you, and the smallest one farthest away. The distance between the saucers can vary depending on the age and skill level of those playing. Then have the kids take turns tossing the bags onto the targets of their choice, and score them for any successful hits. Easy and fun!