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Slime : All About This Addictive Fun Toy

From practically trending on twitter and taking over your Instagram feed, to endless YouTube DIY tutorials, the internet today is obsessed with these gooey, squishy jelly-like toy products the millennials came to call ‘Slime’. While some find peace through meditation and yoga and others take on reading to alleviate stress, the world now seems to rather spend time endlessly watching strangely satisfying and many addictive videos of this ‘stress toy’.

Although people finding joy in novelty toys which are going viral online isn’t entirely new to the ears, for instance, remember those fidget spinners every person in class carried all the time? But the surge of popularity that slime videos gained over the last two years, has been unbelievable and also makes us wonder – what’s all the fuss about after all?

Fun Facts About Slime

First manufactured by an American toy manufacturing company, Mattel, in 1976, Slime was initially a gucky, green coloured craft product produced using guar gum. Over the years, Slime science has changed extravagantly and now incorporates all sorts of readily available ingredients in the recipes, making it something even a child can now prepare sitting at home.

From glitter slime to glow-in-dark slimes, many variants of this fascinating toy are today available and no longer only interests kids, but even serving as a source of income for people around the world. It all started in 2017 when a group of teenagers uploaded videos online, preparing different slimes using simple ingredients. People found these videos so engrossing that the internet then got flooded with similar tutorials which today get millions of views on a daily basis, helping YouTubers and bloggers all around the world make good money out of a “toy”.

Different Types of Slimes Available in the Market

Source chef.bbci.co.uk

There exists a number of variants of slime in the market today, such as, clear slime which appears transparent, foam slime which is full of foamy beads, glitter slime that is made by adding glitter to the recipe, fluffy slime appearing extra soft and ‘fluffy’ and producing bursting sounds when squeezed and glow-in-dark slime which as the name suggests, illuminates in the dark.

There are sand slimes, magnetic slimes, and even edible slimes prepared with edible ingredients such as chocolate, candies, and jello. All these new variants are only results of additional ingredients mixed with the otherwise basic slime recipe, that has not changed its composition for decades now.

Basic Slime Recipe

Source ichef.bbci.co.uk

The two main ingredients required for the preparation of a basic slime are Glue and Borax.

Ingredients:

  • Glue
  • Borax

Procedure:

  • To make a regular slime, you add 5 ml (one teaspoon) borax powder to 250 ml (1 cup) hot water and continuously stir to prepare a clear borax solution.
  • Add 100 grams glue to a separate bowl and mix desired food coloring agent to it.
  • Pour the borax solution into the glue (not all at once!), you will notice that the sticky texture of the slime has started to appear now.
  • Continue kneading the mixture until the slime seems stretchy enough to you.
  • Once it’s done, your homemade slime is ready to play with!

The Perils Behind the Pleasure

Source images.express.co.uk

Slime may appear harmless, especially with readily available home ingredients being used, but that is not entirely the case, in fact, this people’s favorite DIY toy has proven to cause serious health risks owing to the dangerous chemicals used in its preparation.

Use of Borax

Source myfixituplife.com

With numerous applications, such as cleaning stains, killing insects, and as a preservative for certain products, Borax, or Sodium tetraborate, a naturally occurring mineral, although may be considered safer than its alternatives but still bears many side effects when used excessively, primarily through direct contact as slime. Borax has been found to cause eye irritation, redness, and itchiness in skin and even more drastic effects if consumed orally.

When in touch with your gastrointestinal lining, it can cause ulcers and thus result in severe distress. Other than that, borax can also be held responsible for vomiting, diarrhea, and can be fatal. So, while we allow children to play with slime, we must be more careful and make sure they don’t ingest it because even though they say its harmless, it is still just a mixture of chemicals.

Use of Glue

Source metro.co.uk

Everyone’s favorite multipurpose glue is although considered non-toxic by many, but still, contain volatile organic compounds harmful to us and has multiple times been reported to cause skin, eye, respiratory irritation, and even seizures. In case you or your child comes in contact with it, make sure to wash immediately or report to a doctor in case of prolonged discomfort.

But, There Is a Silver Lining in the Form of Alternative Ingredients

Source i.ytimg.com

Other than these main ingredients, slime makers also incorporate blindly all sorts of chemicals and harmful substances which might be serving the purpose in the product by contributing to its consistency, texture or sliminess, but doing so at the cost of safety. So, even though slime products may be mass-appealing and appear benign and not exactly strictly dangerous to use, one must not overlook the ‘peril lying behind the pleasure’ with the chemicals being used in its preparation and the damaging effects they may eventually have on the users, especially children.

Keeping that in mind, the fun must not be stopped either! With continuously evolving slime science and more aware users, today many alternatives to borax and glue are being used and advertised to make homemade slimes out of easy ingredients, which are much safer than the former and let the users compromise neither on their health, nor the pleasure.

Various Glue-less Slime Recipes

Water Slimes

Source i.ytimg.com

These slimes are still as oozy and sticky as glue slimes, but much safer, using water as the key ingredient along with some clear shampoo, in order to make clear slime, otherwise desired colour can be obtained using different colouring agents.

Ingredients:

  • Water
  • Clear Shampoo
  • Coloring Agents

Procedure:

  • Add 1 Cup or 250 ml of clear shampoo of significant thickness and jelly-like consistency to a bowl.
  • If desired, add food coloring agents or water colors to the bowl and mix properly to get an even tone throughout the mixture.
  • Add 1 cup of water to the mixing bowl and continue stirring the ingredients until a slimy mixture with thick consistency is obtained.
  • Cover the container with an air-tight lid and refrigerate it for 2 to 3 days.
  • Your homemade water slime is ready to play with! If it seems to lose its texture, you can keep it back into the refrigerator to regain its stickiness.

Slimes Out Of a Body Wash

Source i.ytimg.com

Here, you can also use hand soaps, dish soaps or clear shampoos in place of body wash, just making sure that the consistency of the alternative is enough to provide the desired fluffiness to your fluffy slime. Other than the body wash as the key ingredient, we are going to use some food coloring agent to give the color to the slime, some corn-starch readily available at a grocery store and water.

Ingredients:

  • Body Wash
  • Food Coloring Agents
  • Corn Starch

Procedure:

  • Add two tablespoons of body wash to the mixing bowl.
  • Add desired food coloring and continue stirring till the color is spread throughout the mixture.
  • Pour cornstarch into the container.
  • When the mixture gets a slimy consistency, knead the mixture well and play along.

Shaving Cream Slimes

Source i.ytimg.com

This alternative to glue is readily available in your dad’s washroom cabinet and already has got the foaminess to contribute to your ideal slime when mixed with some shampoo, a little bit of salt and lots of fun!

Ingredients:

  • Shaving Cream
  • Shampoo
  • Pinch of Salt

Procedure:

  • Pour ½ cup or 125 ml shampoo into a container.
  • Add ½ cup of shaving cream to the container and mix together.
  • Add two tablespoons of salt and stir the ingredients till a gel-like consistency is obtained.
  • Freeze the mixture to obtain a fluffy slime to play with!

Chia Seed slimes

Source sugarspiceandglitter.com

This is another famous recipe of a chemical-free slime that is consequently edible, although not ideal for packing in your kid’s lunch box, but definitely more comfortable to leave with your toddlers to play around with.

Ingredients:

  • Chia Seeds
  • Food Coloring
  • Water
  • Corn Starch

Procedure:

  • Take half a cup of chia seeds available at your local grocery store and add them to two cups of water.
  • Put the container in the refrigerator for 24 hours covered with an airtight lid.
  • The mixture now should be gelatinous and without lumps. Add food coloring and whisk.
  • Add a ½ cup of corn flour and knead the mixture well till desired consistency is obtained.

Banana Slime

Source amazon.com

This slime recipe comes as a surprise as who could imagine banana turning into a slime? But this is as fun to play with, with not more, than your regular slime, and a bonus: its edible and 100% safe!

Ingredients:

  • Banana
  • Corn Flour

Procedure:

  • Cut a banana into slices and further crush it until it almost gets turned into a paste-like consistency.
  • Add corn flour to the banana paste, one tablespoon at a time, to avoid hardening of the mixture.
  • Mix the entire mixture well until a gooey consistency is obtained.
  • Knead it and your two-ingredient easy to make edible slime is ready!

Yogurt Slime

Source cdn.shopify.com

Another slime recipe with ingredients available readily in your kitchen, yogurt slimes are fun to make and completely safe!

Ingredients:

  • Yogurt
  • Corn Flour
  • Edible oil

Procedure:

  • Take three tablespoons of yogurt of any kind available in the grocery store and pour it in a bowl.
  • Add a couple tablespoons of corn flour to the mixing bowl along with desired food coloring.
  • Keep adding corn flour with continuous mixing and kneading till a squeezy slime is obtained.
  • Add some edible oil to the slime to improve the consistency,
  • Your slime is ready. Knead and play!

Psyllium Husk Slime

Source i0.wp.com

All you need for this interesting slime recipe is psyllium husk, available in the market, some water and food coloring and you can have your fun DIY toy ready to have fun around with!

Ingredients:

  • Psyllium husk powder
  • Water
  • Food Coloring

Procedure:

  • Take two cups of water and add food coloring of the color of your choice.
  • Now add two tablespoons of psyllium husk powder to the water and stir well.
  • Heat the mixture in a preheated microwave for about 10 minutes to get a rubbery, stretchy blend.
  • Let it cool down and then knead the slime and play around!

Chocolate Pudding Slime

Source onelittleproject.com

If there are something kids and even adults love more than slimes, it has to be chocolates and candies! So, why not bring the best of both worlds together? In this rather ‘mouth-watering’ recipe of slime, we take a chocolate pudding with water and corn flour.

Ingredients:

  • Chocolate Pudding
  • Corn Flour
  • Water

Procedure:

  • Take ½ Cup pudding and mix equal quantity of corn flour to it.
  • Give the mixture a good whisk to avoid lumps formation and give a smooth texture to our slime.
  • Add ¼ Cup of hot water and continue mixing.
  • Add more corn-starch, a tablespoon a time, till the mixture turns stretchy, although not very sticky to hands as you knead it.
  • You can add a few drops of oil to smoothen the texture. Continue kneading and prepare yourself a taste-safe chocolate slime!

Gelatin Slime

We bring you another slime recipe without the use of glue or borax, with the use of gelatin and corn syrup only. It is both safe and fun for kids to play with, and they can even nibble on this taste-safe and edible slime.

Ingredients:

  • Gelatin
  • Corn Syrup
  • Food Coloring

Procedure:

  • Add food coloring of your favorite color to a half a cup of water and heat the solution to boil.
  • Pour gelatin purchased from a local grocery store into this mixture slowly with continuous stirring.
  • Add 100 ml of corn syrup and give the entire mixture a nice whisk till the gooeyness appears.
  • Let it cool down and begin kneading the slime to have fun!

Milk Slime

Source i.ytimg.com

With just a cup of milk and some corn starch, who knew one could have all that slimy fun at home? Also, since it is safe and taste-free, even moms won’t worry about the kids playing with this slime all day!

Ingredients:

  • Milk
  • Corn Flour
  • Food Coloring

Procedure:

  • Pour milk to a pan and add corn flour to it.
  • Add desired food coloring and whisk the mixture well.
  • After the mixture gets stretchy, let it cool down.
  • Knead the slime and Enjoy!
Writer
Parth Kohli
Parth has been writing for BP-Guide India for well over a year. He is a budding entrepreneur and an avid learner, pursuing his education in business management (B.B.A.) from one of the central institutions in India. He is presently working on projects based on e-learning and digital marketing. In his spare time, he likes to read and write on various niches, such as the latest developments in sciences, technologies, cyberspace, among many other domains and topics.

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Play Safe in 2019 with DIY Slime Recipes Without Glue

Slime is a great toy for children, and a good de-stressor for adults. However, there's no fun using it if it becomes harmful for your skin and body. Hence, try these slime recipes which are completely safe and donot compromise on the fun.