A dear grandma friend told me that making slime is the rage of older elementary and middle school children right now. It is messy, so it falls upon grandma . . . who never says no. . . to make it from scratch at her house. She relayed the entire experience and it sounded like so much fun. Her granddaughter found the recipe she wanted to use on line, and grandma did not know which recipe she finally selected. I asked her to get the recipe from her granddaughter. It was hysterical – the conversation – and the recipe. Here are the ingredients, as relayed from the granddaughter:
Elmers white glue, one large
Borax Mule Team Laundry detergent
1/4 cup (this is what grandma remembered) cup lotion
shaving cream
contact solution (maybe a tablespoon)
drops of food dye – she selected pink, turquoise and blue
When grandma asked if her granddaughter remembered any measurements, the granddaughter said, “you just eyeball it.” It sounded like my mother, who would be her great grandmother’s generation.
My grandma friend said they threw out a few batches before the mixture (or is it compound?) came out okay, but she thinks the trick was leaving it overnight in a tupperware container. The ingredients cost her about $18-20.
I knew I was going to have to go on the internet to find the exact recipe, but immediately my grandma friend emailed me the recipe from a Michael’s ad that said they carried all the ingredients to make Slime. It must be the rage of the upper elementary to middle schoolers to be the subject of an email blast from Michaels!
Not only one slime recipe was given, included is a list of many different slime recipes. My grandma friend warns NOT to make any of the Slime recipes that call for glitter. I forgot to ask her if she found out the hard way with impossible glitter to pick up all over her kitchen and did not cover the entire kitchen, floor and working areas with old towels first. I suggest that glitter is an outside use only product, if at all!
Here is the link to the recipes from Elmer’s Glue from a Michael’s ad:
Note that none of the recipes include shaving cream or detergent or lotion. It was not hard to find the granddaughter’s recipe using these extra ingredients. Check out
Aha! What she made was not “traditional” slime but “fluffy” slime which instead is “soft, squishy, and fun to play with, while maintaining a solid form. You can stretch it out, squeeze it, and bend it, and still put it back together again. It’s a soft slime that isn’t nearly as sticky as other slimes, too!”
I knew her granddaughter was smart!
And, with those of us who are visual, Amazon Prime, now in the video business, even has a Slime Series, how to programming on how to make different kinds of slime, such as rainbow slime, fluffy slime, banana slime, Play Doh slime, and sand slim, from which the grandchildren can choose.
And for those of us with grandchildren who need immediate gratification, you can buy already made slime! Some of what is available is even amazing to this Grandma.
There is slime for children, for children ages 2 and up, to relieve stress, a magnetic putty is with much stronger magnetic force, an educational toy that teaches about the magnetic field and how various materials can attract. Buy at Amazon.
There is slime for children, for children ages 3 and up, INWISH Magnetic Silly Putty, Liquid Glass Slime & Putty Toys for Kids and Adults with Free Super Attractor Monster Eyes Mini Tin, Purple, which seems to do everything, and garnered five stars on Amazon. It is available in other colors. Take a look on Amazon:
The number one best seller in the slime category on Amazon listed as for ages 8 – 15, is Crazy Aaron’s Thinking Putty, 3.2 Ounce, Super Magnetic Strange Attractor.
The last I looked at said, be careful not to eat this concoction. Now we know that we need mature two year olds, it seems. Isn’t Play Doh a form of slime? Play Doh is listed as ages 2 and up also. See the varieties at Amazon: I hated the small pieces of Play Doh in my house when I was a mother and I could not bring myself to bring it in my house as a grandmother.
I purchased each of the above for my younger grandchildren to test before completing this post. Their video review was adorable. They thought INWISH Magnetic Silly Putty, Liquid Glass Slime & Putty Toys for Kids and Adults with Free Super Attractor Monster Eyes Mini Tin, Purple, was really stretchy and their favorite. The monster eyes apparently stay on and it does stick without pressure. They described all of the slime as “greasy” when first opened and then less greasy when each would play with it. They liked the magnetism. Aaron’s was impossible and must be played with and then it is really stretchy, according to the nine year old grandson, and although it is the best seller on Amazon, it was his last choice. The first one above is their second choice, greasy and stretchy and greasier than the INWISH.
It was the mother of the grandchildren who hated the slime. The five year old got it on the couch and it took hours to get it off! I called my grandma friend who said her youngest grandchild got it on her clothes and it also took hard work to get it off. So, be forewarned. This is an outside project done in old clothes.
Whatever the age of our grandchildren, it is fun to be in the know and know that slime is the thing that is cool right now. Whether it is an idea for an inexpensive visit present, or a stress reliever or “fidget” toy, or science educational, we grandmas can make it or buy it, and then bounce it, stretch it, tear it, shape it, shatter it and play along OUTSIDE with our grandchildren with
Joy,
Mema
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