Mahj MATters Mah Jongg Mats-Cranes
It all began with a problem (as many things do): how do you easily and quickly determine who’s turn is next? Who gets the next tiles? Who pushes out their wall next? And who’s turn is it to deal? We all know the rules: everything goes counter clockwise, except for the next wall, which is clockwise. But when you’re staring at your rack, trying to make a hand out of that mess of tiles, putting those rules into practice is just annoying. There had to be an easier way.
I started with a rough sketch of a circle with some words and arrows, printed it on a piece of paper, and put it in the middle of the table. Well, that didn’t work! The tiles kept wrinkling the paper, and the paper just got in the way. But there was the germ of an idea there.
Around that time I discovered mah jongg mats (yeah, a little slow to the party; I had been using a vinyl French Provençal tablecloth--serviceable, but not optimal!). I looked around at available mats to determine if there was a way to superimpose my graphic on an existing design. From this exercise I learned two things: most existing mat designs are boring; and mats are, in fact, really useful! Mats grip the table, but provide a great surface to slide tiles around. The desire to bring both a little style and a lot of convenience (avoidance of annoyance) to the game resulted in the birth of Mahj MATters™.
Mahj MATters™ mats are a generous 35-inches square (with rounded corners; we’re talking about style here!). Think of them as large mouse pads: thick enough to avoid wrinkling, and thin enough to drape elegantly over your table.
They come in three designs (peonies and cranes, to honor the Asian roots of the game), each with coordinated acrylic tile shufflers that are sold separately or can be bundled with the mat for additional savings. Get one or more for yourself, and as gifts for your favorite mah jongg players!
Facts:
- Mats: 35” x 35” (90cm x 90cm)
- Shufflers: 5” x 8” (12.7cm x 20.3cm)
