Okay, We have an extra room (Two guys in their twenties, house is owned, not rented) and we are thinking of turning it into a Casino style room where we can play cards, just for fun, no money,of course!
Well, help me build the room, it’s perfect… about 12’ x 15’ with a light fixture right in the center of the room. Now ideally, we’d like to give it that casino look by lowering the light, and changing it to a lighted chandler. We’d like to put the thin carpet down and most importantly, have a card table in the center.
Buuuuut we’re on a budget so we’d be happy saving the money by making whatever we need to such as the table but really we don’t know where to start.
So pretend you have a blank room and you want to do this, in your humble opinion and on a humble budget, what would you do?
It’s still garage sale season so I would look around for your table & chairs at garage sales. Even your light. Check the local paper for garage sales and “for sale” furniture ads.
Look for a poker table top at a store. Poker is hot hot hot right now. I frequently see table tops at places like Walgreens and our local “deep discount” store. Sometimes I see tops with legs (er…that would make it a table, eh?)
If you get a cheap table or table top right now, you guys can use it to gauge how much you’re actually going to play. If you play enough that the top falls apart then you can justify buying a more expensive one. If you end up not playing that often you’ll have not wasted your money.
I would opt to get a throw rug, not carpeting. If you guys are going to be eating chips, drinking beer/pop and smoking in there you’ll want to be able to pick it up and shake it out or hose it down outside. When I bought my house I found awesome deals on ugly-yet-passable rugs at discount stores like Value City (there are some in IL). Get something you won’t cry over if you spill a can of Coke on it.
Here is a good site on building a poker table and holding tournaments.
If Blackjack or other table games are what you’re after I haven’t heard of anyone making a Blackjack table, but Kardwell sells them. They’re a bit pricey though, couple hundred.
If you are into poker and plan on having regular games, get comfy chairs, make sure the table is big enough for folks to sit comfortably. Make sure it has a padded rim around it. Have enough room for a couple of TV tables to be near the chairs. Also, a fridge/bar/counter area to have snacks, to sit out if you do mini tournaments. TV’s are always nice for game days, etc. Spring for decent chips and get some plastic cards, paper cards are crap and won’t last. There are some combo tables that do roulette/craps/blackjack/etc however, someone has to know how the betting goes or it’s not that fun. Good lighting is important, you need to be able to see the cards, it doesn’t have to be overall bright, but you shouldn’t have to strain to see the flop.
I am a professional poker dealer and our tables are all made in-house. They are all made out of plywood, with a light padding and a felt cover, the rim of the table is a little trickier but covered in more padding with a naughahyde cover. The table gets dirty enough, you don’t want the edge to be nasty from messy hands/arms. Get cupholders, decide if smoking will be allowed, if it is, make sure there are plenty of ashtrays and decent ventilation. Black out the windows.
I have a friend that has weekly poker nights, she puts out a nice spread of food, has plenty of snacks around, etc. Make sure you make friends with the pizza guy.
Know your local and state laws. You do not want to get nailed for running an illegal gambling house. It sounds like you want your buddies to come and play, and it may start out that way, as fun, but pressure can change you into a felon. Know what you are doing.
(For most jurisdictions, but IANAL) You can not charge a rake, you can’t charge time, you can’t rent out your seats, you can’t charge and entry fee. The only money you can get from your card nights is money you win on the table.
