With my graduation party coming up within the next week I have been searching for great food, drinks and activities. Giant Jenga after a few glasses of fruity sangria sounded perfect! So, I headed to lowes to get this project started. And yes, I rebelled against my dad and brother saying I’m not allowed to use power tools, blah blah blah. I should have majored in carpentry because I have quite the knack for building. This isn’t a difficult project but if you do have to cut the wood yourself be careful! 

  • I got 5 3×2 and had them cut into 7.5 ish lengths so that they would square up 3 boards across and 3 boards on top. If you want to do 2×4’s or any other size board just measure accordingly. And do as many pieces as you want just remember you need multiples of 3. 
  • Lowes was kind enough to cut my pieces of wood into the sizes I needed, in store for no extra charge. Otherwise, diy at home with a table or hand saw. I did have to do some at home adjustments on some pieces because the length of a full 3×2 wasn’t an exact match for the length of the needed pieces. *wear eye protection* I can’t even imagine the pain of an eye splinter! Also, let someone know you are using power tools, just so someone knows to maybe check on you every once in awhile or listen for a yelp! Be smart when you are using something that can cut your whole hand off in one sweep. 
  • Once the pieces were cut I took a hand sander and sanded all four sides and “rounded” the two ends. This got rid of splinters but also helped the blocks move between each other for the game. 
  • My last little touch was spray painting the blocks with “Jenga.” I took scrapbook letter stickers and used an exacto knife to cut out the letters on card stock. This gave me a full word stencil to use over and over for each block. I only stenciled the two slimmer sides because that’s the part you will see during the game. (spray lightly because it will build up on the stencil. I found I would have to wipe off the extra paint every once in a while so it wouldn’t bleed on the blocks before I even sprayed.) You could also do a date, phrase or name instead if the game is for a special occasion and then give the pieces as a party favor at the end of the night. I plan on using it for years to come so I kept it generic. 
  • Stack and enjoy!!