Clothespins! Game

Clothespins! Game

Clothespins! Game is a matching strategy game that's good clean fun. Spoiler alert - there are no clothespins involved with this game. A better name might have been Clothesline Game.

There are four game boards and each game board has the start of three clotheslines on it, in a vertical position (see image above, far left), and it is one piece. The game boards are a heavier cardboard than the clothing cards. The clothing cards will be played (hung) horizontally.

Object:
Be the player with the most points once someone completes three clotheslines of matching clothing items or matching patterns on clothing items. 

Set up: 
Give each player one game board with the start of three clotheslines on it. Shuffle the cards, deal four to each player, and put the remainder of the stack face-down on the table. 

Play:
Players take turns. On each turn you are allowed to play 1-4 of the cards from your hand on your clotheslines, or discard 1-4 cards (if you are holding cards that you won't need). After playing/discarding cards, the player ends his turn by picking enough cards from the stack so that he again has four in his hand. Each clothesline must have a minimum of three clothing cards on it before you can place the end card with the finishing pole. More than four can be played for extra points. The more cards you play, the more points you will receive. There are also five bird cards in the deck. You may use a bird card to steal a laundry card from any opponent's open clothesline, or move one of your cards from one clothesline to another. Birds cannot take clothing off a finished clothesline. Once someone has three completed clotheslines, the game is over. Points are given for each card played and subtracted for each card still in your hand. The player with the highest score, wins.

Try this:

• Forget about the game, just use the cards for a fun matching game and build clotheslines.
• Use the cards to play a matching memory game. Match for clothing type or pattern.
• Hold the cards in the non-dominant hand and push the top card off with the thumb to deal the cards.
• Place the cards in a pile and deal by picking up the top card, one at a time, without sliding other cards off the pile or tipping it over.
• Build the longest clothesline you can with all striped clothing or all shirts, etc.
• Make a long clothesline using a pattern like skirt/shirt/socks over and over, or striped, checkered, dotted.
• Work on top/middle/bottom by giving instructions such as hang a shirt on the bottom clothesline, hang a checkered piece of clothing on the middle clothesline, etc.
• Give each person a game board. Mix and place all the cards in a face down grid on the tabletop. Players take turns turning over one card. If they can use it, they hang it on their line. If they cannot, they turn it back over. Other players who may need it try to remember where they saw it. Leave the clothesline ends in, but only pick it up if you are ready to use it. Keep playing until someone fills three clotheslines with four clothing pieces and an end pole. 
• Clean up by mixing all the cards in a single-file pile, face-up on the table. Choose an attribute, such as striped clothing. Go through and pick up all the striped cards. Pick up the first one and place it on a second one. Now pick up both and place it on a third. Now pick up all three in a stack and place on a fourth. Keep going until you can't hold any more. How many can you hold in one hand? Once you have picked up all the striped, choose something else to pick up, like all socks. Put them away by the handfuls until they are all in the box.
• Work on visual discrimination, spatial relations, visual closure, visual memory, figure ground, manual dexterity, socialization skills, in-hand manipulation, sequencing, executive functioning skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: 4 game boards, 66 playing cards
Ages 5+, 2-4 players

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.