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.
Best slime recipe ever!! Super easy and recipe is very accurate!
Easy and works great! Thanks! My 7 year old granddaughter had a lot of fun! We used a scale too to add some math fun.
So glad you enjoyed the homemade slime recipe!
I would rate this 0 stars if I could. They did not show how much glue we needed. Me and my best friend were so disapointed . We recommend if you would like to wash for five minutes. Not for kids.
Hello, if you scroll to the recipe card it says 8 ounces of glue is needed. Thanks!
Did not work at all. Ended up being glue soup
Sorry to hear that, adjust activator and contact solution as needed.
I’d add more saline if too thin.
Best slime recipe we have come across!
I’m so glad you love the recipe Heather!
why does it have liquid on it
i love it so much
How much slime does this make approximately?
Hi J! It makes enough for a couple kids to play with. Enjoy!
Half is enough for fun. Half makes 5.5 ounces of slime. We did use a lot of saline. We used two tablespoons of saline solution for half the recipe. We added gems too.
Can I use clear glue instead of white glue?
Yes but the consistency will change slightly. I would start with 3/4 the bottle and add more as needed :)
What if I have green glue. Will that work as well?
If it has the same ingredients as Elmer’s glue it should work, but you will want to check the ingredients on the glue.
So fun!! I made it with a bunch of kids at a summer camp and it was a huge hit. I didn’t even measure the ingredients – just a few globs of glue, a spoonful of baking soda, and a squirt of activator (1tsp borax in 1c warm water) – but it still turned out awesome! Next time I would personally add a little less activator. Looking forward to making this again!
Hi there! Have the ingredients in front of me – about to make the slime for my niece and nephews. just curious to know how long it will last if I keep it in a sealed plastic jar? Excited to make this, thanks so much for posting!
It should last 2-3 weeks at room temperature. Looking forward to hearing how it goes!
It was great it wasn’t sticky and really fun
How can I print this from the computer
Scroll to the recipe card and there is a print button above the video. Have fun making it!
Love this I have always wanted slime thank you 😭
Can you use laundry softener to activate this slime?
Hi Ruth! I haven’t tested this recipe using laundry softener. Let me know if you try and how it works outs!
Can I not add saline solution? Cause I don’t have it
Hi Katherine, I haven’t tested this recipe omitting the saline solution, it helps with the texture/consistency. Hope that helps!
Perfect. So easy. My 9-year-old daughter has been trying to find her own DIY slime and has been making up concoctions that do not even resemble slime. I told her I would help her and found this recipe after looking at a couple beforehand and decided to try this one. We just finished and it came out exactly as she wanted and likes it It’s very sizzly and poppy as she describes. Thank you we will be making this again adding other ingredients like glitter and beads to see what we can come up with. My daughter said we could make it softer by adding shaving cream I am wondering if you know anything about this. If so, how much would you suggest?
Hi Brittany! I am so glad you and your daughter enjoyed the slime recipe! It’s always a hit for the kids :) I have heard of people using shaving cream, but have not tested a recipe using it. Best of luck!
More like silly putty but it came out well. I just wiped with a paper towel to blot the moisture after it sat in a container. Kids love it. Not as messy as some clays they have had.
Great slime. Easy to make. Does anyone know why it started separating after sitting in a container for an hour? The slime was still not sticky & stretched fine but it was wet & had clear liquid on the top
if you put water in it it will do that
It might make water slime (just a guess)
Definitely always use slime activate or saline solution not water when making this slime!