Finally! A slime recipe that really works – no liquid starch, borax, detergent. Super simple and super stretchy saline slime. Ours stretched over 40 feet!
I’ve been trying to make slime for over two years. Yes, you read that right, two years! Finally, after all those failures, I found a recipe that actually works! It uses only 3, easy to find ingredients, and no liquid starch, borax or laundry detergent. Just quick, easy and with perfect results every time! We love our saline slime recipe!
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links
Check out how easy it is to make this slime!
It takes about 5 minutes to make the slime, so I’ve set the video to double time. Enjoy!
Years of Slime Failures
Have you ever seen a really cool slime recipe?
Over the past couple of years I’ve been so inspired by some of the amazing slime activities I’ve stumbled across. Yet, when I tried to make my own slime, every attempt was a complete and utter failure.
About six months ago I went on a massive shopping trip buying every possible ingredient. I had researched the science, read so many recipes. I was determined to make slime.
But after spending over 6 hours trying, all I had was a lot of wasted materials, batches of nasty, unusable gooey substances, and a splitting headache (that powdered borax always does a number on me!).
To say I was frustrated with slime making would be the understatement of the century. I put together a lot of our lessons learned and tips on slime here.
When looking up slime recipes, one of the first things I noticed was that almost all of them called for liquid starch. As a Canadian I don’t have access to liquid starch. To demonstrate my own devotion to the slime cause, I even tried making my own liquid starch using a technique from an older military man, turned prepper. It still didn’t work!
Next I turned my attention to trying it with borax powder. Failure.
I spent hours reading labels and searching for the one, rare brand of detergent that I was promised would work. It still failed. Probably because the exact magical laundry detergent I was told to find, couldn’t be found anywhere, and the others were poor substitutes.
It shouldn’t have been so hard. All I needed was a substance that would give the glue some stiffness and remove the stickiness. There had to be another answer. Finally I found it.
3 Simple Ingredients = Wildly fun bath time!
Three Crafty Girls Where Have You Been?
Then a friend sent me this video of three cute sisters calling themselves Three Crafty Girls. In the video they quickly and easily make this crazy, big, fluffy slime. The best part? The basics of their recipe were so simple. You could find them anywhere.
Where were these girls during my years of slime failures????
I was so excited. I raced down to my corner store, grabbed the one ingredient I didn’t have and within 5 minutes of getting home had my first successful batch of slime!
After that batch, we made 10 more. Each time playing with the recipe and technique, fine tuning it until it was so simple, so easy.
Slime That Is Soooooo Stretchy!
This slime is so stretchy my kids were able to stretch a single batch over 40 feet through my house before it finally broke!
How To Make Slime – So Easy and So Quick
You need three ingredients:
White Elmers School Glue (non-toxic, washable)
Baking Soda (known as bicarbonate soda in some places)
Buffered Saline Solution – You can find this in the eye care aisle. Make sure it is the buffered saline. In the States this will contain boric acid, but the one I bought here in Canada doesn’t have boric acid or sodium borate listed in the ingredients. It still worked though! Formulas may vary based on your location. Check the ingredients and ensure it is buffered saline, and it should work.
Optional – food coloring
&
Add a bottle of white glue to a bowl (I found this quite forgiving so just try and get most of the glue out of your bottle or if you buy in bulk estimate the portion). Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda. Mix completely with a spoon. Add a few drops of food coloring if you want at this point. Mix well.
Now, start adding a few drops of the buffered saline and mixing with the spoon. Just do it a few drops at a time. It will start pulling together immediately. Continue adding a few drops, then mixing. Repeat until it starts to pull into a stringy ball.
This next bit is how we find it works the best, put some buffered saline on your hands. Pick up the slime and start kneading and mixing it with your hands. It will be sticky, but only through working it will you get the best, stretchy slime. Work it really well. It will change into a better slime consistency as you work it.
If you find it is still a bit sticky after a few minutes of kneading, add one or two drops of buffered saline and continue working it in. Don’t add too much or you will start to lose the stretchy properties and become more prone to breaking. If you find your slime is breaking you are adding too much saline.
Voila! SLIME!
Playing with slime is a lot of fun, but, like any activity, parents need to be involved and informed. Please, read all labels. I can only speak to the products I can buy locally. The formulas and products in your area may have different ingredients or formulas which may produce different results. Extreme caution should be used if you are substituting any ingredients. Be informed and use appropriate safety steps. If you have any questions or concerns, speak to your doctor or local health practitioner. For more tips and safety precautions about slime, check out this article.
MORE SLIME AWESOMENESS! Because yes… we are now addicted to this amazing stuff!
Having problems or have questions? Check out my follow up article: Slime Safety & Tips for Success!
Slime STEM Activity – Erupting Slime
How to Make Crystal Clear Glass Slime
Check out our new Sight Words Slime
Looking for more amazing STEAM activities and inspiration? Check out STEAM Kids my bestselling educational activity book packed full of ideas for hands on learning and fun!
And right now you can save 40% on the ebook with promo code: MAYTHEFOURTH
eBook / Paperback
Join the STEAM Powered Family Newsletter to get even more inspiring, hands on learning ideas, free printables and access to resources. Click here to become a member of the family!
Grab your free STEAM Fun Pack of printable activities
On TpT or My Store Shiny WordWorks
MORE FROM STEAM POWERED FAMILY
Angie says
I’m struggling with how making slime is really a stem project. Can you explain so I can explain to others?
Shelley says
ETA – You can now read my full article in answer to this question here: http://www.steampoweredfamily.com/activities/slime-stem-activities-learning-with-slime-stem-and-fun/
Absolutely! Although I will point out that this article is not about slime as a STEM Activity, but simply a unique way to create slime for whatever use. For us a big benefit of slime is the sensory, fine motor strengthening, and anti-anxiety properties. That said, it absolutely can be developed into a STEM activity with a little ingenuity. If you are interested in developing slime STEM activities, I would encourage you to read more about STEM activities and how to develop STEM activities on almost any topic here: http://www.steampoweredfamily.com/stem-activities/
Now, some ideas for STEM and slime… Slime is a fantastic experiment for exploring polymers and non-Newtonian fluids. You can learn more about the science here: http://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/basic-slime-science-homemade-slime-for-kids/ Our process, although lengthy, has been a wonderful experience in learning about the science of slime and the chemistry involved in how all these diverse ingredients work together (or didn’t work in our experience!). Not to mention working with various recipes (which is fantastic STEM work!). In addition, slime experiments can involve measurements and distances. The experiment my children created to see how far they could stretch the slime involved some wonderful calculations. Plus, it truly enters STEAM territory if you get creative with your slimes, even using it in art or engineering projects. STEM and STEAM are all about getting out of the box and taking activities deeper. Bringing in those pillars in creative ways. At this point we have only scratched the surface of what we can do with slime since this is the first time we’ve been able to successfully create it. I’m really looking forward to delving deep into all the amazing learning opportunities offered by slime and developing many slime STEM Activities, like creating this heat transfer slime: http://leftbraincraftbrain.com/2015/04/23/heat-sensitive-color-changing-slime/
Hopefully that gives you some great resources. Perhaps I should write a whole article on this topic! 🙂
Jeanine says
Omgsh thank you so much for asking such a valid question! I too have struggles in the explanation to the kids especially. Thanks
Jeanine says
EEEEP!!! SOO excited to try this! We are Canadian too–& have resorted to pay over priced shopping etc from US Amazon 4 Sta-Flo cuz, I am no chemist! Thank you for sharing!
angie says
Thank you so much for your wonderful explanation and ideas!
Ruth Precious says
Hi. In the UK would I use Baking Powder or Bicarbonate of Soda please?
Thanks
Shelley says
Bicarbonate Soda 🙂 And I’ve updated the post so it is clear for others. Thanks for asking!
Patty says
This is brilliant! I buy white glue by the gallon, so could you please give me a measurement of your bottle of glue? Thank you so much!
Shelley says
If you click on the images of the supplies it will take you to the details on all the products including standard sizes. Enjoy!
Danielle says
Thank you! I’ve been looking for a borax free version for a long time.
Does it have to be white glue or would clear crafting glue also work?
Thank you 🙂
Shelley says
It needs to be a PVA glue. Enjoy!
Kid Minds says
Oh, my! Who would have thought my contact lens solution will help to make a perfect slime. And I would totally be on a look out for that slime STEM activities post!
Lindsay says
Gutted. Tried this several times and failed, it just doesn’t pull together 🙁
I don’t use saline so maybe I got the wrong one or saline in the UK is slightly different.
Glad I tried it without children present or would have been a disappointment.
Shelley says
It’s very important that you use BUFFERED saline, not plain saline. Saline won’t work, it needs to be buffered. I’ve heard many success stories from people in the UK, so you do have the right buffered saline there. It will be in your eye care area selling as eye drops or contact lens rinse (it is not contact lens solution). Here is a link to UK version of the product we bought in Canada. https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001E5CD3M
Pam says
I make this also but add shaving cream before the contact lense solution. Makes it veryyyyy fluffy.
Shelley says
I will have to try that! Thanks for the tip. 🙂
Karina says
Hello, can you specify how much glue exactly please?
I made some but I think I added too much baking soda and the glue split!
Shelley says
If you click on the links you can see the size of the bottle. If it is splitting, likely you are using too much buffered saline. Go with very small amounts, just a few drops at a time and really work it in before adding more. Only add just enough until it isn’t sticky. Too much saline will cause it to break.
Natassia Doets says
Hi there
We’ve just fallen in love with your blog and have ordered your book.
We’re in the U.K. And we’re wondering if Bausch & Lomb Sensitive Eyes Saline Solution 500ml https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001E5CD3M/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_wduYybYFS18D4 would work for slime??
Shelley says
As long as it is a buffered saline it should work. Thank you for the support!
Rosanne says
Used your slime recipe today with my daughters after a sad attempt at a store bought kit from 5 below. It worked! And now I have happy kids with slime!
Shelley says
Yeah! That is great news!
Ashleigh 🦄 says
Mine isn’t coming together I followed all the steps and it didn’t work
Shelley says
You need to ensure you are using a proper buffered saline solution. Try a different buffered saline if the one you are using doesn’t work. It should start to pull together very quickly and easily. The other issue could be your glue. I recommend using Elmer’s School Glue (PVA), as it has the correct chemical composition for the reaction. If you use the wrong glue, it won’t work.
Kita Shough says
How do you make it marbled?
Shelley says
Simply make two batches and mix. 🙂
Lynn says
Hi deary… Im far away from asia… How long does the slime last? do you keep it in an air tight container? Im a special ed teacher and these will be awesome for a few of my kids who loves slime…
Shelley says
All your questions are answered here: http://www.steampoweredfamily.com/family-life/slime-safety-tips/
Rebecca Barnes says
Well…I tried this. It works great with the buffered saline solution. So, I thought, “I’m a chemist, I should be able to make this myself”. This will probably be on my tombstone…anyways, I made a solution of EDTA and saline – and it didn’t work. I tried a bunch of variations, increased the ionic strength – still no dice. The best I can do is to make a melted cheese consistency glue slime. So I called Bausch and Lomb. Turns out, the “buffer” listed in the ingredients is a boric acid buffer. That’s why it works. Unfortunately, it means this slime is not actually boron-free. At best, we can call it a reduced-boron slime.
I’ll keep looking – if I come up with something safe, I’ll let you know! Thanks for doing stuff like this – the more kids that get interested in science, the better!
Amber says
Exactly how much saline solution do you use? If you happen to know it would be greatly appreicated!
Shelley says
I’ve always made my slime by feel (aka stickiness), plus the amount I add to my hands, but as an estimate if you are planning for a group I’d say 50 to 100 drops-ish.
Terri says
Can I do this with clear glue?
Laura says
I made this recipe and it worked great at the beginning but the next day it was all watery and the slime part was really stiff and not stretchy. ..any ideas why?