Homemade slime recipe made with only 3 ingredients! Only takes a few minutes to make and will entertain your kids for hours!
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How do you Make Homemade Slime?
When it comes to kid’s crafts, homemade slime is one of the best ideas! It’s easy, quick and super inexpensive. My kids always have SO much fun playing with it!
Do you remember Gak? I remember playing with that stuff as a kid and LOVED it. I recently came across this slime recipe and knew I had to make some for my kids. It is very similar to gak. They literally played with it all afternoon and had so much fun!
This is a fun craft to do for an indoor activity. I know we will be making this slime recipe plenty of more times throughout the year. The best part is, it only cost about $1 to make! Seriously, my kids couldn’t get enough of this stuff. It is a little messy, so make sure to lay down a plastic tablecloth (a trash bag works too) so the slime doesn’t get on the table.
This is the best slime recipe because it comes together so quickly and only takes 3 main ingredients (plus food coloring if desired). Have fun with it!
Slime Ingredients
- 8-ounce bottle Elmer’s white school glue
- 1 1/2 – 2 Tablespoons contact saline solution, more as needed (or slime activator)
- 1 Tablespoon baking soda
- Food coloring, optional
How to Make Homemade Slime
Add glue and food coloring to bowl. Squeeze the bottle of glue into a bowl (photo 1). Add your food coloring if desired, and stir until combined. Then mix in baking soda (photo 2).
Mix in saline solution. Add 1 1/2 Tablespoons saline solution and mix until combined (photo 3). If it’s too sticky, add 1/2 Tablespoon more solution at a time. The more you add, the thicker it’ll be. The less you add, the slimier it’ll be (see texture in photo 4).
Knead the slime. Using your hands, knead the slime until it holds together. It will be wet and gooey at first, but just keep kneading until it all comes together.
Store slime. Store slime in a container with lid, or in a zip top bag. The slime is best to play with on a place mat.
Tips for Making Slime
- Use plastic bowls and spoons to make clean up easier.
- Make sure to get the color correct before adding the saline. It’s harder to mix in when it begins to thicken.
- For thicker slime, add more saline solution. For a slimier texture, add less saline.
- Slime is best to play with on a place mat, plastic tablecloth or even a trash bag.
- Can add in extras like glitter, scented oils or even mini styrofoam balls.
- Recipe makes about a cup of slime. Can double or triple based on how many kids there are.
- If you have long hair, make sure to put it into a pony tail. If a little slime gets in your hair, simply rub some coconut oil or olive oil on top and comb it out.
Frequently Asked Questions
To make homemade slime, combine a bottle of glue, a Tablespoon of baking soda and slime activator or saline solution. Knead until smooth and stretchy.
1. Bottle of glue
2. 1 Tablespoon baking soda
3. 2 Tablespoons of contact solution or slime activator
Variations
This slime recipe is perfect for making fun variations like a fluffy slime or my butter slime recipe! It’s super easy to customize and add mix-ins like different food coloring dyes, glitter, scented oils or even mini styrofoam balls.
It’s especially fun to make different holiday variations, like the orange and green Halloween slime below. We put it in these hefty quart size bags and drew monster faces on for a fun Halloween activity. My kids loved the different colors and are already begging to make blue and pink!
More Slime Recipes and Kids Activities
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Slime Recipe
Video
Equipment
- Plastic bowl and spoon.
- Ziptop bag for storing.
- Place mat for enjoying slime.
Ingredients
- 8 ounce bottle Elmer’s white school glue
- 1 Tablespoon baking soda
- 1 ½ – 2 Tablespoons contact saline solution or slime activator , more as needed
Optional: Food coloring
Instructions
- Place glue in a bowl. If you're adding food coloring, add it now until desired color is reached. Then mix in baking soda.
- Add 1 1/2 Tablespoons saline solution or slime activator and mix until combined. Add 1/2 Tablespoon more at a time if it is too sticky. The more you add, the thicker it'll be. The less you add, the slimier it will be.
- Stir until you can no longer stir and then kneed with your hands. It will be sticky at first, but keep moving it with your hands until it is no longer sticky and desired consistency is reached.
- Pull apart and have fun playing. Store in a covered container or ziptop bag. Best to play with on a place mat.
Notes
- Use plastic bowls and spoons to make clean up easier.
- It’s best if your saline solution contains boric acid and sodium borate
- Make sure to get the color correct before adding the saline. It’s harder to mix in when it begins to thicken.
- For thicker slime, add more saline solution. For a slimier texture, add less saline.
- Recipe makes about a cup of slime. Can double or triple based on how many kids there are.
- Food coloring
- Scented oils
- Glitter
- Mini styrofoam balls
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Categorized as: DIY
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
I used this recipe and the more I kneaded it, the saline separated from the rest. It was not sticking together. Any idea what it needed?
You could try adding more shaving cream!
I like to use laundry detergent as my activator. First I put my glue in, then I put my coloring, after that I put my laundry detergent in mix and that’s it! It might fall apart but if u don’t give up and keep kneading you will get an exelent slime!
Hello! We made this slime yesterday and it worked out great! Put it in a zip lock baggie overnight & now the consistency is super weird. It’s like the clear liquid oozed out of the slime & now the slime is a hard gooey glob. Is there any way to fix it?
Another satisfied slime-maker here! Thanks!!
A mess free success with my 3 yr old. !!And I enjoyed it too! Used 2 tablespoons of eye solution and a bit more baking soda than suggested.
I’m glad it was a hit!!
Hey guys I know I already replied the first time but just for you guys that don’t know how to make slime I will tell you ingredients three ingredients you can also get Elmer’s Glue and you can get Elmer’s clear glue guy and you’re activated guys baking soda you can get baking soda you can get borax and water but guys want to mix thoroughly so when you mix it when you get white guys okay just mix it a lot okay so yeah and yeah by them are the ingredients you can make slime out of I hope you guys have a nice day and tell me in the comments how did you solve turn by love you guys
I was skeptical about this recipe but it really works! Thank you for this recipe!
I forgot to mention that we made this with clear glue and it works great.
It is very hard to master clear slime! Good job!
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Excellent. I’m a child therapist and made it within 30 minutes with 3 kids and they were so pleased. We added food coloring and a few drops of peppermint essential oil. It’s a sensory toy too, for anxiety and stress 😀
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe. Food coloring and scents are my kids favorites to add.
Can you use clear glue?
Yes, definitely! :)
This is the best recipe for making slime. The ingredients are easy to find in any store…you probably have them all at home. The recipe is easy to follow. The slime comes out perfect. The key is the saline solution. Thank you for sharing.
I’m glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for your comment! :)
It’s Works!!! I love Slime ❤️ I always love slime
Slime really is the best! :)
I needed to make slime
I made the slime for first time, it was quick and easy and my son had fun. After kneading and playing with slime is it supposed to still leave water? I stored it in ziplock and there is water coming from slime.
There may be a little water residue but it shouldn’t leave much!
Great recipe!! Made this with my 2 and 4 year old. It worked with my 4 oz. Gel washable Elmer’s glue. I added extra contact solution to make it less sticky almost like Flarp. It came out perfect and kept them entertained. Thank you!
I’m so glad it worked well for you! I always make it thicker for my younger 2 as well. Thank you for your comment and review Christina. :)
We really enjoyed making this with our three year old! Added more saline solution as thicker is easier for little hands.
Thank you!
I’m so glad you tried it! Thanks for leaving a comment and review Jody!
Definitely the best slime recipe I’ve used! Lots of helpful tips to make it fun and satisfying even for young kids (3-5 yrs). Thank you!
I’m so glad to hear this! Thank you for your comment. :)
Such a fun thing to keep the kids entertained. They love slime.
My kids are obsessed with slime! Thank you so much for this easy recipe!