Leave bulky gear at home and hit the beach with a compact, portable game board fashioned from a place mat. Use fabric ink and a vinyl eraser to create designs. Gather stones or shells for the game pieces -- no worrying that one will get lost in the sand -- and let the good times roll.

Portable Game How-To
Stamp a checkerboard on one side and a tic-tac-toe grid on the other. 

1. Using a ruler and a disappearing-ink pen, draw guidelines for your game board on a fabric place mat. 

2. Dip a vinyl eraser into fabric paint, then stamp the design along guidelines. You may have to use a utility knife to cut the eraser to an appropriate shape; for thinner lines, use the side of the eraser.