Wednesday, May 30, 2018

Slime ... an Ooey, Gooey, Craft.

My younger daughter has been obsessed with slime lately. She has been making all kinds of slime with all types of ingredients and then seeing if they are a win or a fail. I am going to share just a few of her favorite recipes and a few pictures.

I really can't stand messy crafts ... anyone who knows me knows that is a fact! I taught 2 year olds for many years and although I know that the messy craft is really the one that cements the memory verse and concept you are teaching, I just really did not like if it was a painting craft or one with play dough.  Painting is easier. Play dough ... well that gets all over, in the cracks, under fingernails, and worst of all - it gets mixed together to make "new" colors.

Slime reminds me of play dough. It's messy, sticky (at first) and then can get on things like carpet, clothes, in the cracks of the wood floor ... and then it's just YUCK! Thankfully my 12 yo can do it ALL herself ... I just need to buy some ingredients. And having a grandmother who's a scientist and likes exploring with these kinds of messes is a plus as well - they have a slime area over there now. My daughter is now being an entrepreneur and selling her slime -- with scents (to cover up the very strong Tide smell with essential oils), different colors, different textures (like cloud slime), and then with sparkles or foam beads or crayon shavings. It all baffles me, but it is a somewhat easy thing to make AND it can keeps hands busy for read aloud time and such ... which can make this a plus.

So here is the basic slime recipe ... glue and Tide. Voila! You have slime. You can mix in your color with paint or food dye, but do that BEFORE putting in the "activator" otherwise you will stain your hands. We do the ones without Borax (it's been tied to burnings and causing bad reactions and things like cancer so we steer clear.)

Here are some other variations you can try:

  • Mostly shampoo and a little bit of glue. It seems to work with many shampoos so you can just use what you have on hand. And then you can add your "activator."
  • Coconut oil (melt until it's still chunky, but soft), glue, choice of color, mix, then add your "activator".
  • Toothpaste and hair gel, mix, then freeze for a while (like 2 hours). If that doesn't work you can try adding an "activator". This one she is still working on so she's not sure if it's a fail or not.

  • Last one, hand sanitizer (Bath & Body works is the best we've used) - mix and then place in freezer for 2 hours. You can add a color. This one works sometimes and not other times. 


So what is an "activator" - Tide, Borax (but we don't do this one), contact lens solution with baking soda, and salt. My daughter salt is her least favorite ... you need to use too much and sometimes it doesn't work.


Have your children made slime? What's YOUR favorite recipe? My daughter would love to hear from you!

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1 comment:

Kristen Billings said...

wow awesome project! ...i'm going to have to try this with my kids!

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