I am so excited for this year’s lineup for Summer Camp! It’s our first day of Summer Camp. There will be lots of amazing ideas.
Make sure to visit daily for ideas for summer fun! With all these great craftss, activities, etc, your kids will never be bored this summer.
To start things off, I have a fun DIY project for you and your kids!
Floam can be so fun to play with, but it is also expensive.
An afternoon of fun doesn’t have to break the bank! Instead, today I’m sharing a simple, inexpensive DIY Floam recipe!
I went to 3 different craft stores to purchase polystyrene beads that most use for this recipe. They were no where to be found. Then I searched on line and they were expensive.
So, I tried to figure out what could I use instead of the beads. Voila! How about Styrofoam cups???
Styrofoam cups can be purchased at most grocery stores, WalMart and the dollar store.
This DIY features using Styrofoam cups rather than polystyrene beads (the little foam beads in a bean bag).
You and your kids will love making and playing with this homemade Floam!
Be sure to subscribe to my YouTube page for some more fun videos, tips, and tricks!
Supplies
- 2 tsp of borax
- 1/4 cup of Elmer’s Glue
or white tacky glue
- 1/2 cup of very warm water
- 1/4 cup of warm water
- 1 package of Styrofoam cups or you can use the real thing Poly-Fil Micro Beads
- gel food coloring
- measuring cups, bowls, spoons
Step 1: Break 4 or 5 Styrofoam cups into your blender. Mix them in your blender with about 1-2 tablespoons of water until they become finely ground up and make small beads.
I would recommend pulsing your blender and then mixing for about a 30 seconds until the Styrofoam is all broken up.
The time will vary depending on your blender, but try to get the foam broken up easily. It doesn’t have to be perfect, though!
Don’t over pulverize.
Step 2: Mix 2 tsp of Borax with 1/2 cup of very warm water. Stir this mixture and let the Borax dissolve. Set this bowl aside.
In another bowl, mix 1/4 cup of glue and 1/4 cup of warm water. Also add food coloring into this mix.
Step 3: Pour both the Borax and glue mixtures into a gallon ziplock bag. Then, measure about 1 1/2 – 2 cups of the shredded Styrofoam cup and add this to your slimy mixture.
You can always add more or less of the Styrofoam if the Floam seems too wet or dry.
Step 4: Now comes the fun part! This step is perfect for your kids to be your little helpers.
Close the ziplock bag and squeeze the mixture around until it begins to solidify.
Soon you will have floam!
Let the completed mixture air out for a few minutes. Add more Styrofoam if your floam seems too watery.
That’s it- you’re good to go!
Your kids will love making AND playing with this floam!
It will be a great summer activity that will beat the heat and keep boredom at bay.
The beauty of this activity is that your kids will love to play with it for many summer days to come!
You can’t beat an inexpensive, interactive activity!
Make sure to keep this in a airtight container or ziplock bag.
This was made about 1 month ago and still is working great!
This floam is not edible. Have caution with kids.
Eating styrofoam, glue and borax can be toxic. Also, glue and borax is made with chemicals – use caution.
This floam activity needs adult supervision.
If you prefer to purchase floam or slime instead of making it, there are some awesome options below to look at!
Enjoy!
This post contains affiliate links.
Related Posts
Reagan Favreau
Editor at Design Dazzle
- 15 Fall Crafts for Adults
- Enter A Secret Playroom Hidden Behind Wardrobe Doors
- Our Complete Exterior Home Remodel!
- Fall Home Tour
- Mrs Claus Cottage Christmas Tree
- Summer Camp: Free Printables for 3 Ring Binder Dollhouse
- How to Decorate a Thanksgiving Table + Free Printable
- DIY Rosette Fabric Rug
- A Letter to Kids: Santa is Real
- Free Butterbeer Printable & Recipe
- FREE Paper Doll Printables - The Nativity, Santa's Helpers and more!
- 100 Mischievous ELF Ideas
this is good
Thank you! It’s fun to make.
i does not work its just water and styrafoam
Not sure what you mean? The recipe clearly states other ingredients to add to the water and styrofoam. : )
Is there any other meathods of breaking up the cup other than a blender?
We didn’t try any other methods to break up the cups. It could be fun experimenting!
Is there a way to make this without the borax?
I’m not sure. You would have to experiment. Good luck!
Hi!
I dont know if you still need an answer to that question, but yes there are 2 other ways to activate your slimes.
-1 tbs. Contact lense solution with 1 pinch of baking soda
– add laundry detergent to your glue slowly until the mixture becomes slime. (Highly prefer gain, and tide)
What do you do if you don’t have a blender.
I’m not sure how to make this craft without a blender. Just break the styrofoam cups in little pieces. Of course, you could always purchase the pellets. But I was trying to make something easy and styrofoam cups are pretty easy to find. Wish I had another answer for you.
depends on what you do have. the point is to break the cups down into tiny pellets. if all else fails, a knife and a cutting board, but thats pretty labor intensive.
Yes, Sarah, the point is to break the styrofoam cups into little pieces. Thank you for mentioning and clarifying.
How much Floam does this make?
Jeanna – I can’t remember : ). My guess would be about 2 – 3 cups.
this looks super cool!
Thank you. It’s a fun one to make!
Hi there! Were going to make this but I have some questions. How much of the foam beads would be needed, 1/2 cup?
You show liquid borax, but the link is powder. How do I get that figured out? Can the ‘recipe’ be doubled? Do any special adjustments need to beade?
Thanks!!
I’m not sure how much of foam beads you would need. Just experiment. I think 1 cup might work. The borax we used is powder and it is added to the water. We didn’t use liquid. I’m not sure about the recipe being doubled in size – but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work?? Any special adjustment need to beade? Not sure what you mean. If you are just adding styrofoam beads just keeping adding to the slime until it feels right. Good luck. It’s a fun one!
Hi Sumer! Toni made no mention of using liquid Borax. She did mention to use powder Borax, however. Read the instructions very carefully as they are tried and true. Remember that if your floam is too wet, use less water. If the floam is too dry, add water to the consistency you’d like for your floam to be. I hope it works for you!
Good Luck!
Roxanne
Thanks, Roxanee!
Did you find that the food coloring comes off on your hands?
No, we played with the floam and had no problem with staining from the food coloring. Maybe it depends on what kind is used.
This type of garbage is polluting the environment.
Kids do not need this crap to play and be entertained.
I disagree. Have a great day.
All the stupid ads covered up most of the floam recipe. This would have been a great summer project for the grandkids to do. Incredibly disappointed.
Hi Wanda,
I’m not sure what type of device you are viewing this on but no ads are covering the recipe on my devices. I’ve viewed it on different devices. Reach out to me at Toni@designdazzle.com if you want the recipe.
I’m very sorry you are incredibly disappointed. As the ads are what pay for the free content of thousands of my blog posts and the many years I have spent producing all these blog posts.
Have a great day!