I was in our local dollar store the other day when my next homemade slime recipe inspiration hit! Passing by an endocarp of very colorful beads, feathers, and masks it dawned on me that these colors would certainly make for an awesomely colorful Mardi Gras slime recipe, and I was definitely right!

MAKE MARDI GRAS SLIME RECIPE 

If you want a super colorful slime, then our Mardi Gras Slime Recipe is perfect! Bright colors with tons of glitter and sparkle. You can make the slime colors and set up the slime making activity with a decorating buffet of colored glitter, sequins, confetti, and fun theme accessories.

MAKING YOUR MARDI GRAS SLIME RECIPE

All of our holiday, seasonal, and everyday theme slimes use one of our 4 basic slime recipes that are super easy to make! We make slime all the time, and these have become our go-to favorite slime making recipes.

I will always let you know which recipe we used in our photographs, but I will also tell you which of the other basic recipes will work too! Usually you can interchange several of the recipes depending on what you have for slime supplies.

Make sure to read through our recommended slime supplies and print out a slime supplies checklist for your next trip to the store. After the supplies listed below you will see click here black boxes for slime recipes that will work with this theme.

CLICK HERE FOR YOUR FREE SLIME RECIPE CARDS!

SALINE SOLUTION SLIME RECIPE

Which saline solution is best for slime? We pick up our saline solution in the grocery store! You can also find it on Amazon, Walmart, Target, and your pharmacy.  Ensure the saline solution contains borate ions, making it a slime activator.

YOU WILL NEED:

• 1/2 cup Clear or White PVA School Glue
• 1 tablespoon Saline Solution (must contain boric acid and sodium borate). Good brands include Target Up and Up as well as Equate brand!
• 1/2 cup of Water
• 1/4-1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• Food coloring, confetti, glitter, and other fun mix-ins 

HOW TO MAKE SALINE SOLUTION SLIME

STEP 1:  In a bowl mix 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup of glue well to combine completely.

STEP 2: Now’s the time to add (color, glitter, or confetti)! Remember when you add color to white glue, the color will be lighter. Use clear glue for jewel toned colors!

STEP 3: Stir in 1/4- 1/2 tsp baking soda.

Baking soda helps to firm and form the slime. You can play around with how much you add but we prefer between 1/4 and 1/2 tsp per batch.

I get asked all the time why do you need baking soda for slime. Baking soda helps to improve the firmness of the slime. You can experiment with your own ratios!

STEP 4: Mix in 1 tbsp saline solution and stir until slime forms and pulls away from sides of the bowl.   This is exactly how much you will need with the Target Sensitive Eyes brand, but other brands may differ slightly!

If your slime still feels too sticky, you may need a few more drops of saline solution. As I mentioned above, start by squirting a few drops of the solution onto your hands and kneading your slime longer. You can always add but you can’t take away.  Saline solution is preferred over contact solution.

STEP 5:  Start kneading your slime!

It will appear stringy at first but just work it around with your hands and you will notice the consistency changes. You can also put it in a clean container and set it aside for 3 minutes, and you will also notice the change in consistency! 

SLIME TIP:   We always recommend kneading your slime well after mixing. Kneading the slime really helps to improve its consistency. The trick with this slime is to put a few drops of the saline solution onto your hands before picking up the slime.

You can also knead the slime in the bowl before you pick it up. This slime is stretchy but can be stickier. However, keep in mind that adding more activators (saline solution) reduces the stickiness, eventually creating a stiffer slime.

You will love how easy and stretchy this saline slime is to make and play with!  Once you have your desired slime consistency, time to have fun!  How big of a stretch can you get without the slime breaking?

EXTRA SLIMY RESOURCES

If you scroll down, you will find click here boxes with our most popular slime topics that you may find helpful.

Slime is easy to make, but it’s important that you read the directions, use the correct ingredients, measure accurately, and have a little patience if you don’t succeed the first time. Remember, it’s a recipe just like baking!

SLIME FAILURES

The biggest reason for slime fails is not reading through the recipe! People contact me all the time with: “Why didn’t this work?”

Most of the time the answer has been lack of attention to supplies needed, reading the recipe, and actually measuring the ingredients! So give it a try and do let me know if you need some help. On a very rare occasion I have gotten an old batch of glue, and there is no fixing that!

STORING YOUR SLIME

I get a lot of questions regarding how I store my slime. Usually we use a reusable container either plastic or glass. If you keep your slime clean it will last for several weeks. And…if you forget to store your slime in a container, it does actually last a few days uncovered. If the top gets crusty just fold it into itself.

If you want to send kids home with a bit of slime from a camp, party, or classroom project, I would suggest packages of reusable containers from the dollar store. For large groups we have used condiment containers as seen here.

 

What’s the science behind the slime? The borate ions in the slime activator  {sodium borate, borax powder, or boric acid} mixes with the PVA {polyvinyl-acetate} glue and forms this cool stretchy substance. This is called cross linking!

The glue is a polymer and is made up of long, repeating, and identical strands or molecules. These molecules with flow past one another keeping the glue in a liquid state.

When you add the borate ions to the mixture, it starts to connect these long strands together. They begin to tangle and mix until the substance is less like the liquid you started with and is thicker and rubberier like slime!

Picture the difference between wet spaghetti and leftover spaghetti the next day. As the slime forms the tangled molecule strands are much like the clump of spaghetti!

Read more about slime science here!