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It’s that time of the year when it gets dark super early, the temperature drops, and once I’m inside the house, I ain’t coming back out!

While it’s still technically fall, depending on where you live it feels like Winter, and hanging out with your friends outside of the house feels like a no-go.

But you don’t have to limit spending quality time with your friends just because it’s cold outside.

Even if neither of you feels like putting on real clothes unless it’s to go to work (it be like that sometimes), you can still have fun together.

This blog post is here to give you and your friends affordable and fun things to do inside the house this winter!

8 FUN THINGS TO DO WITH FRIENDS IN THE WINTER

*Note that all of these activities can be done in person or virtually, just in case you have some long-distance friendships or you really don’t feel like leaving the house!*

1| Book Club

Is it just me or has reading become cool again since the rise of BookTok and Bookstagram?

I know for me and my friends, the exposure of so many amazing books (especially by indie authors), has encouraged us to keep our book club going strong for 3 years now!

Whether you’re learning something new together by reading non-fiction, or enjoying a mental vacation and reading fiction, it’s a great way to spend time with your friends.

A book club can cultivate great conversations that allow you to learn more about each other’s perspectives, personalities, and personal experiences.

This year I’ve been on a Black Love kick, so here are some book recommendations *please note these are for the grown folks!*:

Keep You To Myself – by BriAnn Danae
Only For The Week – by Natasha Bishop
At the End of It All - by Rae Lyse
Blu – by M. Monique
Only If It's You – by T'Lyn
Before I Let Go – by Kennedy Ryan
The Endgame: The Sun Series, Book 2 – by Rae Lyse
Luca (The Eisenberg Effect Book 1) - by Grey Huffington
I Wanna Be Down – by AshleyNicole
Priest – by Bre Shadae

2| TV Show Binge

Starting a new (or old) TV series with a friend from episode 1 is an investment, but the perfect one for the wintertime.

Ordering your favorite foods, putting on your comfy clothes, and giving commentary on the episodes is such a relaxing and fun way to connect.

Between Netflix, HULU, Disney +, Amazon Prime, Peacock, and so many other streaming platforms, you and your friends can find endless shows to enjoy together.

If you’re completely stuck coming up with TV Show ideas, check out these recommendations below:

Insecure
Sex and the City
Bridgerton
Desperate Housewives
Harlem
Pretty Little Liars
Reality TV (All the Housewives series on Bravo, Love at First Sight on Netflix, and Love & Hiphop on VH1)
Grey's Anatomy
Law & Order SVU
Breaking Bad

3| Movie Night

Like binge-watching a TV series, a movie night is also a chill way to spend time with your friends inside the house.

One thing you can do to jazz up your movie nights is to pick a theme. Like if it’s around the holidays you may want to do a Christmas movie marathon.

You can have even more razzle-dazzle by having cocktails and snacks that match the theme of your movie night.

Check out these classic movie recommendations:

Harry Potter Series (Obviously has to be #1, it is cold weather season of course!)
Twilight Series
The Avengers Series (Marvel)
The Hunger Games Series
The Maze Runner Series
Never Been Kissed
She’s All That
Heartbreakers
Swimfan
Bring It On
Girls Trip
Waiting to Exhale
Soul Food
Deliver Us From Eva
Two Can Play That Game
Love & Basketball
Brown Sugar
Madea Movies
B.A.P.S.
Think Like A Man
The Other Woman
The First Wives Club
How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days
He’s Just Not That Into You
Blended

4| Game Night

We love a game night! What’s nice is that now there are so many unique games available beyond the classics (but we love those too!).

Have a potluck where everyone brings over food, drinks, and their favorite games to play.

Below you can find a list of some popular games:

If you want to get creative, make your own game!

Here are some examples of DIY games:

Creating your own Jeopardy board
DIY Escape room with riddles and puzzles
Finish the song lyric
Create a TV trivia game using Kahoot!
Guess the celebrity baby picture

5| Mystery Box Cook-Off

Okay, you have to go outside a little bit for this one, but just to pick up a few items from the grocery store. If you’ve ever watched the show MasterChef, then you’ll be familiar with this idea.

The Mystery Box challenge is when you and your friends engage in a cook-off using only the ingredients you have in your box (besides some basics like seasonings, butter, milk, oils, etc.).

You all will create each other’s mystery boxes by selecting a few random food items and ingredients to be used in the cook-off.

Make it tricky for them! Make weird combinations or include something random to throw them off.

The key is not letting your friends see what they are working with beforehand.

If you really want to get into it, put all the ingredients into a cute basket or box and record the whole activity as if you guys were on a TV show.

6| Paint Night

Paint and Sips have become wildly popular in the last decade or so, with friends getting together to enjoy organized painting events at local restaurants and bars.

However, since COVID-19, many of those events have become virtual, making it easy to enjoy this activity at home.

There are several different ways you can enjoy a paint night with your girls, like:

Attend a virtual class in real time.
Purchase an on-demand class to follow at your own speed.
Use free YouTube tutorials.
Purchase pre-drawn canvas’ from a nearby art studio and paint it yourself.
Come up with a theme and you and your friends research ideas with Google and Pinterest, and partake in a freehand painting session.

If you purchase a class, sometimes the companies will offer to send you the supplies.

However, if you choose to DIY it, you can find everything you need at your local craft store or in a bundle like this on Amazon.

Here is a list of the basic items that you would need:

Canvas
Paint Brushes
Paint
Paint Trays
Cups for water
Paper towels

7| Debate Night

By definition, a debate is when you argue about a particular subject matter.

Now that might not be fun for some people, so know your friends. But for others, a healthy debate can spark really fun and exhilarating conversations.

We all have topics we are passionate about and discussing them amongst friends is a great way to learn more about one another.

These conversations can also allow you all to connect on a deeper level.

Setting rules and boundaries is imperative when hosting a debate night to prevent real arguments that can ruin friendships.

Some basic debate night rules include:

Give your undivided attention when someone is speaking.
Don’t cut people off when they are talking.
You can’t go over your allotted time.
Don’t hit below the belt.
Leave your judgment at the door!

Come up with questions that you think your friends can speak to and don’t include messy, shady, or controversial topics at the risk of damaging your friendships.

Below are some lighter debate topic questions:

Is a hotdog a sandwich?
Is it better to be rich or famous?
Should the work week only be 4 days?
Should high school athletes be paid?
Should the legal driving age be increased?
Should pets be allowed in stores even if they are not service animals?
Should uniforms or a dress code still be required in the workplace?
Can a marriage be successful if you and your spouse live in separate homes?
Is social media ruining people’s ability to make genuine connections?
At what age should you leave your parent’s house?

8| Yearbook Night

At the beginning of the year, we often set goals and New Year’s resolutions, but how often do we reflect on how far we’ve come by the end of the year?

Creating a DIY yearbook digitally is a fun way to celebrate your highs and give grace to your lows.

Doing this activity with your friends allows you to see what you may have missed in each other’s lives in the past year.

Because adulting makes it difficult to keep in touch with friends as much as you would like to, a Yearbook Night is a nice way for you all to play catch-up.

To create your digital yearbooks, you can use programs like Canva, PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, etc. to make them fun and aesthetic.

You can also include things like your favorite quotes from the year, songs you loved, top movies, shows, podcasts, etc., and funny superlatives. Think back to the yearbooks from your school days for some creative inspiration.

Then grab some food, get an HDMI cord to hook up your laptops to a TV (or cast it if you’re new school), and enjoy your Yearbook Night together!