by Wendy Wonnacott

Take one part need for fun game that I could play with both hubby and kiddo without boredom setting in and two parts need to torture wool into submission and you get a felted game, of course.

Mancala is believed to be one of mankind's oldest games coming from either Africa or the Middle East 1000 to 3000 years ago (that should narrow it down). Empires have been won, and lost over such a simple game (okay I'm making that up but hey, it could happen).

Players take turns moving their beads around the board, whoever has the most beads in their big bowls when all of the little bowls have been emptied wins! There are countless variations to the rules, as well as over 350 different names for the game, I've included the rules that I most frequently use.

I used Cascade 220 for the very first time on this project and I'm hooked! So many colors and felts like a dream. A great little game to use up all those feltable odds and ends, I used three different colors, the turquoise and blue heather as main colors and the gold as the contrasting color on the cups in random stripes. An attached i-cord brim was added for extra stability. Use your or the recipients favorite colors, don't like stripes? Do solids!

model: Fortunato Caragliano and Melissa Caragliano photos: Wendy Wonnacott

MATERIALS

[MC1] Cascade Yarns Cascade 220 [100% Peruvian Highland Wool; 220yd/201m per 100g skein]; color: #9457 Dark Blue Heather; 1 skein
[MC2] Cascade Yarns Cascade 220; color: #9455 Turquoise Heather; 1 skein
[CC] Cascade Yarns Cascade 220; color: #7827 Gold; 1 skein

1 set US #8/5mm double-point needles
1 set US #8/5mm straight needles
Tapestry needle for weaving in ends
Sharp needle for attaching cups to base
Thread
36 half-inch (13mm) or larger in diameter beads (or the like) for use as game markers.

16 sts/22 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch (before felting)

Weave in all ends.

Felt in washing machine using low water/economy setting on hot water wash with a couple pairs of jeans or other heavy garment to provide agitation. Add a small amount of detergent or dishsoap to the pieces. Check every 10 - 15 minutes. Once stitch definition is no longer visible, pull out, rinse with cold water then block. For blocking I found hard plastic drinking cups worked like a charm. Adding in some nuts/bolts/nails for weight will make for a nice and tidy bottom to the bowls. Prod the base into the correct dimensions and pin down. Let pieces dry completely. Shave pieces if desired.

With either tapestry needle and left over yarn, or sewing needle and thread, tack down bowls to base as shown in the schematic. Then join together brims of bowls where they meet with a couple stitches, tying off between the bowls. Trim all ends.

Note on gauge and substituting yarn: If you are substituting another yarn for Cascade 220, I recommend that you knit a swatch of the yarn you will be using, then felt it, making note of pre- and post- felting measurements. Knit up and felt the bowls first. Arrange the bowls according to schematic and measure how large a piece you will need to make for the base. Using your swatch's pre- and post- felting dimensions, you can determine how many stitches and how long of a piece you will need to knit in order to have finished measurements you need for your alternate yarn. And don't fear -- if your calculations go awry, your base can be trimmed to the right size after felting!

Now you're ready to play. See how below.

Basic Rules of MancalaMia! (adapted from the computer game Mancala v2.0)

At the start of the game each of the little bowls contains 3 beads.
To play, each person takes turns moving their beads counter-clockwise around the board.
First the player chooses which little bowl to move the beads from, then places them one at a time into the successive bowls.
Beads placed into the player's big bowl are points for that player.
Beads are not placed in the opponent's big bowl.
If the last bead is placed in the player's own big bowl the player gets another turn.
If the last bead is placed in an empty little bowl on their own side of the board, then they capture all the beads in the opposite (the opponent's) little bowl.
The captured beads and the capturing bead are placed into the player's big bowl.
The game is finished when all of the little bowls on one side of the board are empty.
The player with beads remaining gets to put them in their big bowl.
The player with the most beads in their big bowl wins.