CLOSED - Nerd Games - Winter 2024

Crafty Shenanigans Craftalongs
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Welcome to the Nerd Games!

Runs January 1, 2024 - March 31, 2024

This is a craftalong where nerdy crafters all over the world can share our projects and give each other encouragement - that’s really all there is to it! If you feel you might be a nerd, or enjoy some nerdy things of any kind, or if you’re just nerdy about crafting, you’re more than welcome here!

HOW TO JOIN

Simply make any craft, take photos of it, and post them in this group with the following header, which will be explained below:

Prompt: (Write the name of the prompt you are entering your craft for here. Don’t forget to include the month!)
Team: (Choose one of three, listed below)
Project Name: (Name your craft anything you like; fanciful titles or simple labels/descriptions are all fine)
Project Link: (Paste the link to your community post for the bonus points)
Brief Description: (Tell us anything you’d like to about the craft, such as how you made it, and why it fits the prompt.)
Project Photo(s): (Post photos of your awesome craft here, so we can ooh and aah over it!)

FAQs

Have more specific questions about the Nerd Games? You can find FAQs here!

THE TEAMS

There are three teams to choose from, and no requirements for joining any of them; simply choose one that speaks to you, put the team name in your first project header, and presto - you’re a member! You will remain on the same team for the entire season. You may change teams in future seasons.

  • Team Running With Scissors :running_woman:t2: :scissors:
  • Team Knotty By Nature :yarn:
  • Team Bits and Bobs :thread:

THE PROMPTS

Prompts will be posted on a monthly basis in the post below. Please choose a prompt. Monthly battles are the only time sensitive prompts. The non-battle prompts are open for the entire season. See THE POINTS section below for point values and several additional crafting opportunities for each of your crafts. You can craft specifically to fit the prompts, or you can craft first and then find a prompt to fit it into. We’re pretty lax about slightly stretched interpretations of the prompts; just explain in your description how it fits!

  • Monthly prompts will close at 11:59pm Central Time on the last day of the current month.

BONUS POINTS

We are trying to keep things simple, so there will only be one type of bonus point available. COMMUNITY POINTS will be given when you post a link to a post you’ve made within the Lettuce Craft community, and will be worth 20 bonus points for each project shared. Please be sure to participate in the entire community and not just in the craftalong!

THE POINTS

This competition is just for fun and the points are for nothing more than motivation and bragging rights, but go ahead and rack up points by posting projects for you team! Points break down as follows:

  • Monthly battles and prompts: 20 points each (must take at least 30 minutes of crafting time)
  • Free Range: 20 points each (must take at least 30 minutes of crafting time. Up to six allowed per season
  • Big Time projects: 50 points each (must take at least 5 hours of crafting time. Up to three allowed per season)
  • Zaps: 10 points each (any craft that takes less than 30 minutes to make. Up to five allowed per season)
  • Research Projects: 100 points (must take at least 20 hours of crafting time. Up to two per season)
  • Bonus Points: COMMUNITY bonus points (worth 20 extra per project) are the only bonus opportunity available at this time.

Special Note:
All prompts are supposed to be crafted within the current season. However, we have decided to make an exception to this rule. Let’s say you craft something for a swap near the end of the Summer season. You’ve sent the swap package, but it hasn’t been received yet. Fall season begins, your partner has received their swap item, and you are ready to post. You may go ahead and post your project from the previous season for the current season.

THE RULES

  • Players must craft to the best of their abilities and have a minimum of 30 minutes of crafting time per submission, unless otherwise noted.
  • A project can only be submitted for one prompt or crafting opportunity.
  • A project does NOT have to be "nerdy,” it only has to fulfill the prompt as you see fit.
  • Submitted projects must be started and completed during the current season, unless otherwise noted.
  • There is SO MUCH to do in the Nerd Games. Do not feel like you have to craft everything. Do what inspires you.
  • We welcome all players from the Nerdyverse, no matter their Geekdom. We even welcome non-nerds!
  • We are never mean.
  • We never exclude someone.
  • We will keep it clean-ish (PG-13).
  • Never hesitate in contacting the Gamemakers (@storerboughtcreation or @Smeddley) with your questions, concerns, or ideas.

Previous Seasons:

Fall 2023
Summer 2023
Spring 2023
Winter 2023
Fall 2022
Summer 2022
Spring 2022
Winter 2022
Fall 2021
Summer 2021
Spring 2021
Winter 2021
Fall 2020
Summer 2020
Spring 2020
Winter 2020

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Team Roster and Tracking

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Please post your projects with the following header:

Prompt: (Write the name of the prompt you are entering your craft for here. Don’t forget to include the month!)
Team: (Choose one of three, listed above) *
Project Name: (Name your craft anything you like; fanciful titles or simple labels/descriptions are all fine) *
Project Link: (Paste the link to your community post for the bonus points) *
Brief Description: (Tell us anything you’d like to about the craft, such as how you made it, and why it fits the prompt .)**
Project Photo(s): (Post photos of your awesome craft here, so we can ooh and aah over it!) *

  • January Battle - Tortoise vs Hare - CLOSED
  • February Battle - Grimm vs Disney - CLOSED
  • March Battle - Luck vs Misfortune

January theme - Fables!

  1. The Astrologer Read it here - Craft something that is for you to use right now, is small, or is yellow or sparkly.
  2. The Two Pots Read it here - Craft something that comes in a pair, is very delicate, is made of metal or clay, or is brown.
  3. The Peacock Read it here - Craft something that is ostentatious, for decoration only, made using feathers, or jewel toned.
  4. The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing Read it here - Craft something to wear, made of wool, used to disguise or cover something else, or is white or grey.
  5. The Miser Read it here - Craft something out of something you’ve been saving (“the good stuff”), or finish a WIP, or make something you’ve always wanted to try but were hesitant to (for whatever reason).

February Theme - fairy tales, original vs happier (Disney) versions (they’re not all the Brothers Grimm, I found this article that talks about 11 of them… Read it here

  1. Beauty and the Beast - craft something that is beautiful, beastly, delicate, or red.
  2. Frozen - craft something that is used in the cold, has to be refrigerated, is fractal (snowflakes?) or is blue.
  3. Hercules - craft something that requires strength, is inspired by love (or given to a loved one, and yes, pets count!), or is white.
  4. The Little Mermaid - craft something that requires water, is inspired by underwater creatures, or is aquamarine or has swirls.
  5. The Frog Prince - craft something that is ‘hoppy’ (happy leap year!), is related to plants (lily pads, I’m stretching here!)m is green or has spots.

March theme - superstitions!

  1. Knock on Wood - craft something that is made of wood, requires hitting or pounding to construct, has wavy lines as a pattern, or is brown.
  2. Throw Salt over your Shoulder - craft something that makes a mess while you’re making it, is made up of many smaller pieces, is round, or is white.
  3. Don’t Walk Under a Ladder - craft something that has many steps, is for the house or home improvement, is made of metal, or is brightly painted.
  4. A Broken Mirror is Bad Luck - craft something that is a mirror image, is reflective or shiny, uses glass, or is silver.
  5. Lucky Penny - craft something that is small, round, copper in color, or is very cost effective to craft.
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Pin Prize Collection

We’re continuing the Nerd Games enamel pin collection! Each season you’ll have the opportunity to earn up to three pins. Each pin will be different, and every season the pins offered will be different. Try to collect them all, or have fun picking and choosing ones to work toward!

This year we’ll have two pins each season based on LettuceCraft categories (Art, Home & Garden, Fashion & Wearables, Fiber & Textiles, Food & Drink, Paper & Vinyl Crafts, Crafty Shenanigans, and Swaps). The third pin offered will be random.

WINTER EVENTS:

Fashion & Wearables: Submit three projects to the Nerd Games that qualify for the Fashion & Wearables category on LettuceCraft. Create posts for the three projects in the appropriate boards and claim Community Bonus Points for all three projects. (Projects do not necessarily need to be posted in the Fashion & Wearables category, they just need to qualify. Like a hand woven brooch could qualify for that category, but might also be appropriately posted in Fiber & Textiles.)

Fiber & Textiles: Submit three projects to the Nerd Games that qualify for the Fiber & Textiles category on LettuceCraft. Create posts for the three projects in the appropriate boards and claim Community Bonus Points for all three projects. (Projects do not necessarily need to be posted in the Fiber & Textiles category, they just need to qualify. Like a macrame plant holder could qualify for that category, but might also be appropriately posted in Home & Garden.)

Doer: Submit at least 20 projects of any kind this season, and thoughtfully comment on and like at least 20 projects submitted by others this season.

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To claim your prizes:

Once you have completed the requirements, send the below submission form to LovelyMiss via private message by 11:59 pm (central) on Sunday, March 31, 2024.

Prizes will be sent after the season ends.

Pin Event Submission Form

I am claiming: (Fashion & Wearables; Fiber & Textiles; Doer)

I attest that I have completed the requirements for the Pin Event(s) I am claiming: Yes/No

My name and mailing address (as it should be formatted for sending, including country) are:

Show Us Your Pins Contest

Put together a display of any kind to show off and store your Nerd Games pins collection (and other pins, too, if you want). Your display doesn’t necessarily have to be crafted, handmade, or submitted for a prompt (but if it is, be sure to submit it for a prompt/points)! Anyone who shares a photo of their pin display in the Winter 2024 Nerd Games thread will be automatically entered into a drawing for a gift card at the end of the season.

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Prompt: January Battle-Tortoise
Team: Running with Scissors
Project Name: mood tracker
Project Link: n/a
Brief Description: Trying to get a snapshot of my mental health. This will be a very slooooow process.
Project Photo(s):

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Prompt: January Astrologer
Team: knotty by nature
Project Name: Zelda welcome mat
Brief Description- I painted (yellow) on a welcome mat for my son’s apartment entrance.
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Very cool! I bet he loves it!

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@Bunny1kenobi - I can’t differentiate the colors that well from the photo, but I hope you have a very yellow year!

@ezrib - Love the Zelda mat! I like how it is nerdy with not being overly obvious. That makes it even cooler.

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Yes, the green and aqua are kind of close, aren’t they? Probably should darken up the green a bit.

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All that matters is that you know, and you can tell. I figured it just didn’t display in the photo. I know my phone distorts certain pinks, so I assumed it was something like that.

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@Bunny1kenobi - This seems like an interesting way to track your mood. I hope you find it helpful!

@ezrib - I love that Zelda mat! Now I want to go play some old school Zelda games. :blush:

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Prompt: The Astrologer (January)
Team: Running with Scissors
Project Name: Calendar page envelopes
Project Link: 4x6 Fractal Art Calendar Page Envelopes
Brief Description: I made these this week and actually had to put one in the mail before I could get a decent photo of them.
Project Photo(s):

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What a great use for calendar pages!!

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Prompt : January - Astrologer
Team: Running with Scissors
Project Name: Gnome for the Holidays Casserole Carrier
Project Link: Gnome for the Holidays Casserole Carrier & Matching Bowl Cozies
Brief Description: This was for my neighbor and she could use it right away. Also, it’s reversible and the other color is a yellow flower print.
Project Photo(s):

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Prompt : January – Two Pots
Team: Running with Scissors
Project Name: Two Gnome Bowl Cozies
Project Link: Gnome for the Holidays Casserole Carrier & Matching Bowl Cozies
Brief Description: I used the leftover fabric to create two bowl cozies for the neighbors.
Project Photo(s):

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@megwell - That’s an awesome use for calendar pages. I use a Bob’s Burgers calendar every year, so it wouldn’t exactly work for me, but I think I am going to ask my co-workers for their old calendars next year! Amazing way to r/r/r and get a cool and useful project out of it.

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I have used calendars with one-way-up images before (both scenery and people). It can work, but they can end up kind of awkward too.

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I feel like I got so busy last season that I didn’t have time to make posts here. Hopefully, I will remedy that this season!

Here is how I display the pins I previously received in the Nerd Games:

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I hope to add more at the end of this season!

I made the wall hanging last year and shortly after receiving my pins, I found it was a great spot for displaying them.

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Thats an awesome way to display them!

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Prompt: January - Battle - Tortoise
Team: :yarn:
Project Name: pink tortoise
Project Link:
Brief Description: I made this using embroidery floss and a 2.25mm hook. It took way longer than it would have using regular weight yarn. She’s about 3 inches long
Project Photo(s):

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She’s magnificent! I want to put her in my pocket and show her the world!

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