Slime care

To keep your slime looking new, always wash and dry your hands before playing and play with your product on a clean, non-porous surface! Remember, the more you play with slime, the softer it will become so always knead your products a bit to get the perfect texture!

Don’t forget to close it back in it’s container or an air tight container when your done so it doesn’t dry out.

Slime has been a popular science project for decades, teaching kids about viscosity, polymers and chemical reactions. In the last few years it has become a bona fide cultural phenomenon, with viral how-to videos taking over social media.

While many jumped on board with this fun trend, some became concerned about how safe slime was. Was the fun worth the risk? How can you make it safely and without allergens?

Here’s everything you need to know about the world’s squishiest craft.

What is slime?

A surprisingly humble cultural phenomenon, slime is a mixture of household items that come together to create a polymer substance that acts like both a solid and a liquid, depending on how you play with it. This is called a non-Newtonian fluid.

Making it and playing around with it is a great way to teach kids science principles.

Why do people love it?

Other than the sheer fun of learning science, slime is popular for several reasons. Some find it satisfying to watch it turn from a solid to a liquid and back again.

Squishing it between your fingers can also be a great way to relieve stress. And some people just like it because it’s gooey and fun to stretch.

Personally, I find it fascinating watching basic ingredients turn into something completely different with just a few minutes of stirring. I also use a special type of slime to clean electronics.

What are the different types of slime?

Slime can be made in many different varieties. Here’s a sample of some of the most popular. Each of these links will take you to a video that shows how to make it.

Glitter or unicorn:

Just a basic recipe with glitter mixed in.

Cleaning:

This is a thicker slime that works almost like a lint brush to get crud out of your keyboard and other electronics.

FluffY:

This slime feels like a soft marshmallow when you squish it.

Popping:

Styrofoam pellets or other beads mixed in with regular slime make this one a sensory delight.

Borax-free:

Some people who are concerned about how harsh borax (a cleaning agent) can be on the skin opt for recipes without it.

Glow-in-the-dark:

Yes, it really does glow in the dark and it can be made at home with nontoxic items.

Basic fluffy slime.

 

 

How do I make slime?

It can be made with a wide range of items. Recipes usually include at least a couple of these ingredients:

Borax
Liquid laundry detergent
Contact solution
White school glue
Cornstarch
Shaving cream
Shampoo
Glitter
Food coloring

To make cleaning product, for example, you’ll need borax laundry booster, warm water and white school glue. Here’s the recipe. The American Chemical Society has a recipe for a stretchier slime here.

Fluffy slime typically takes more ingredients because it has a different texture. It’s also borax-free.

A good, basic recipe for borax-free slime calls for 4 ounces (120 ml) of white school glue, 1/2 tablespoon of baking soda and 1/4 tablespoon of contact solution. Put the ingredients in a bowl in the order listed, then mix them together for several minutes until it turns into slime. It should be moist and stretchy, but not sticky.

Need something a little cooler and less basic? You can make glow-in-the dark product with a similar recipe. Here’s the instructions.

How long does it last?

Storing it in an airtight container is key. This will keep it from drying out and will make it last several days. If you store the container in the fridge, you can get slime to last as long as a month without drying out or moulding.

Is slime safe?

Generally, yes. Some people have skin reactions to various ingredients, depending on allergies or skin sensitivity. For example, my daughter gets rashes when exposed to certain laundry detergents, so we stay clear of those recipes.

Most importantly, don’t eat it or give it to a child who may put it in its mouth. Ingredients like saline solution and borax can make a person ill.

The glue has long flexible molecules in it called polymers. These polymer molecules slide past each other as a liquid.

Borax in water forms an ion called the borate ion. When the borax solution is added to the glue solution, the borate ions help link the long polymer molecules to each other so they cannot move and flow as easily.

When enough polymer molecules get hooked together in the right way, the glue solution changes from being very liquidly to a rubbery kind of stuff that we call slime!

Borax & water with glue & water solution: slime

What else could you try?

Water is an important ingredient in slime. Water helps the polymer molecules slide past each other so that it can flow. If you let the water evaporate, it will end up like a solid piece of plastic.

Try making other samples of the product with different amounts of water and compare them to your first piece of slime. In each sample, follow the instructions to make the slime that you followed before, but change the amount of water you add to make the glue solution.

Do not add water to the glue. Use only 1 tablespoon of glue to make the glue solution.
Add two tablespoons of water to 1 tablespoon of glue to make the glue solution.
You may choose to give each sample of the product a different color to help you tell them apart.

 

Slime Texture

We would like to remind our valued customers that some types of slime, by nature, can sometimes undergo a change in texture when exposed to different temperatures. This is a natural occurrence and does not indicate any fault or defect in the product.

If your slime has changed texture due to temperature, do not worry as this can be easily remedied by using our slime activator, which is available for purchase on our website.

Please note that we cannot be held responsible for any changes in texture that occur due to temperature fluctuations.

We will not be able to authorise returns or refunds if slime has naturally changed it’s texture due to temperature fluctuations as this could easily be fixed with slime activator.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.