Introducing...Sequencia!

One of my favorite board games is Sequence, a game that uses a playing board with rows of playing card images. You can work in teams or play individually, and the goal of the game is to try to get rows of 5. This game involves a lot of strategy, but is simple enough for kids to play.

However, while the game is excellent, I'm not in love with the look of it. It lacks 'the pretty'. So I developed a new version of the game, using cards from the Loteria, a Mexican bingo game. I first came across these cards at the now defunct craft store Ruby Dog on Main St., and loved the images and the wonderful colours. So I made the first incarnation of Sequencia a few years ago, using just plain cardboard (you can learn Spanish words like 'Borracho'!). However, the original Sequencia board got pretty beaten up after a while (incidentally, because I was teaching ESL at the time, I also made an 'ESL' version of the game, which taught irregular verbs -- this was a great sucess!).

Recently I wanted to make a sturdier version of Sequencia. So I bought some Loteria packs from Xochico, got some foam board, and the decoupage glue Mod Podge. I mapped out the sequence of the original board game, and corresponded the Loteria cards to that, so the placement of the cards would be as accurate as possible. Then, I made work with glueing the cards with Mod Podge, and coated the whole board with 3 coats of Mod Podge. The result is a glossy and sturdy board. Nice.

The only thing I would change is that I would NOT use foam board again. It's best to go to the hardware store to get some wood boards for this. The foam board does wicked warping when it dries. I had to weigh my board out with heavy books, and it turned out okay.

Sequencia, any one?