Easy to find. Easy to begin.
The cupboard is really one low shelf and a drawer. Keeping it small makes it easier to choose something before the evening disappears into a discussion about what to play.
A set that knows the table
Our dominoes have outlasted two boxes. The present one is a plain wooden tray with a tea towel folded over the top to stop the pieces rattling when we put it away. I like being able to see the whole set at once. A quick check before clearing the table has saved several tiles from an unexpected holiday in the bread basket.
The folder of almost nothing
The homemade games need very little space: a few dots-and-boxes sheets, a paper race track we drew together, and some blank pages for making up the next idea. We use different coloured counters to mark our places. The enormous dots-and-boxes sheet stays in the folder too, folded twice and treated with the respect due to an experiment we are unlikely to repeat.
Cards, pencils, and a tin
A plain pack of playing cards is the easiest thing to take when we visit family. At home it lives beside a little tin containing pencils, spare counters, and a button that once stood in for a lost piece and has earned a permanent place. Nothing here needs to match. It only needs to be ready when someone asks whether there is time for a quick game.