• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Design Dazzle logo

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Home
  • Home Decor / Design
  • Holidays
  • Crafts
  • All Categories
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Home
    • Home Decor / Design
    • Holidays
    • Crafts
    • All Categories
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Design Dazzle » Kids

    Published: Jul 26, 2011 · Modified: Jul 19, 2023 by Toni Roberts · This post may contain affiliate links · 14 Comments

    Rock Candy Tutorial

     

    Hi everyone! I’m Heidi from Mom’s Crafty Space where I blog about all sorts of fun crafty things to do with your kids (and some stuff for the grown-ups too!). I am Mommy to three boys ages 5 and under, and we are always in the middle of one creative (and usually messy!) adventure or another. I’m so excited to be over here today sharing how to make your very own rock candy. It’s so easy!

    Rock candy is always a fun favorite of children, and it’s a fantastic way to disguise a Summer science lesson as a sugary treat! All it takes is a few simple tools, lots of sugar and even more patience!
     
    Rock candy ingredients & supplies: Wooden skewers (cut in half), water, sugar, clothespins and glass jars/drinking glasses. The amount of water and sugar you need depends on how many pieces of rock candy you would like to make and the number of jars you have available (I recommend no more than 2 pieces per jar) – the standard ratio is 2 cups of sugar to 1 cup of water, but we found that we had to add a bit more sugar than our recipe called for. In the end, we used 10 cups of sugar to 4 cups of water.
     
     
    To make our batch of rock candy, we started with 4 cups of water and 4 cups of sugar. Put it all into a large saucepan, because once you put it on the stove it will expand while boiling. I let my 4-year-old mix up the first bit of sugar before putting it on the stove. He was fascinated with watching the sugar dissolve, and it was especially interesting for him to see that we could dissolve even more sugar with the addition of the heat from the stove. Once your pot is on the stove, bring it to a low boil over medium heat, and continue to add sugar one cup at a time until you can no longer dissolve any more of it (making a completely saturated sugar solution).
     
    Turn off the heat and allow it to cool for 15 minutes.
     
    While your sugar is cooling you can prep your sticks. Soak them in water and roll them in a coating of sugar to give the new sugar crystals something to “seed” to. Be sure to let them dry all the way! If they are still too wet when you put them into the hot sugar solution, all of the sugar coating will fall off, and the new crystals will have nothing to grow on.
     
    CAREFULLY pour your sugar solution into your glass jars. If you’d like to add food coloring or flavoring to your rock candy, now is the time to do so. We added color, but we kept the flavor all natural (what kiddo doesn’t like the taste of plain sugar?).
     
    Slowly insert your sugared skewers into the solution. You can use a clothespin as shown to keep your sticks in place. Smaller mouth jars/glasses work best, but only allow room for about two sticks per jar. Be sure that your sticks are not touching the sides or bottom of the glass or each other! They need room for the new crystals to grow!
     
    Set them up in a warm, sunny location where they won’t be disturbed, and wait…
     
    …and wait…and wait…and wait (still with me?)…and wait some more…
     
    After about a week you will have made yourself a batch of sparkling sugar rock candy!
     
    Yummy!
     
    So pretty, so tasty and sooooo worth the wait! These would make fantastic holiday gifts to go along with tea or coffee sets (is it crazy that I have Christmas on the brain in July?)!
     

    You can find me over at Mom’s Crafty Space and on Facebook and Twitter 🙂

    We’re having a Summer CampLink UpParty!
     

    More Kids

    • Creative Ways to Paint Rocks
      20 Creative Ways For Painting Rocks
    • banana ocean smoothie bowl
      Banana Smoothie Bowl (Ocean Theme)
    • Easy Christmas Movie Night Party by The Party Teacher
      A Christmas Movie Night Your Kids Will Love
    • grinch party ideas
      Grinch Party Ideas

    Sharing is caring!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Lissa (Bellenza) says

      July 26, 2011 at 4:06 am

      Such sweet colors you chose! Can imagine these as part of holiday gift packs, as you mentioned (got Christmas on the brain, too)!

      Reply
    2. theolivetree says

      July 26, 2011 at 6:20 am

      ummmm wow! I had no idea it was so easy to make!!

      Reply
    3. MistyandCarla says

      July 26, 2011 at 8:43 am

      So…it just kind of magically forms around the sticks? I'm kinda confused about that part.

      Reply
    4. Heidi @ Mom's Crafty Space says

      July 26, 2011 at 10:40 am

      Thanks for having me over here today Toni!

      @MistyandCarla Yes, the sugar crystals will slowly start to grow on the sticks over the course of a few days. It works best if your sticks have a good coating of granulated sugar before you place them into the hot sugar solution so that the new crystals have something to grab ahold of 🙂

      Reply
    5. designdazzle.blogspot.com says

      July 26, 2011 at 11:30 am

      So awesome!! Thanks Heidi for the tutorial. Can't wait to make some and eat some : )
      Toni

      Reply
    6. Anonymous says

      February 09, 2012 at 3:59 pm

      so i wonder if it would work with sucker sticks instead of skewers????

      Reply
    7. Anonymous says

      April 04, 2012 at 11:34 pm

      Think this would work with xylitol? Would be pretty cool to make candy for kids thats actually good for the teeth :0)

      Reply
    8. Amanda says

      May 02, 2012 at 11:10 am

      I made these last night. Crystals are already starting to form…big time. So much so that most of the jars are completely crystallized inside. Not really sure what to do about that. Or why it's doing it, or what I did wrong…or maybe what I did too right. lol help! 🙂

      Reply
    9. Patricia Needham says

      June 08, 2012 at 1:17 pm

      This is awesome. I'm on it!

      Reply
    10. Anonymous says

      June 13, 2012 at 9:11 am

      So cool! Thanks for the excellent detailed explanation!

      Reply
    11. Bargainmoose says

      July 24, 2012 at 11:42 am

      Thisis such a great idea! I used to love these as a kid, and have always wanted to use them as a party favor. I have some birthday's coming up in my family and this idea is SO perfect! Thanks for the detailed explanation and idea!

      Reply
    12. Anonymous says

      August 15, 2012 at 5:56 pm

      How many rock candy sticks did the 10 cups of water make?

      Reply
    13. Stephen Right says

      August 26, 2014 at 11:25 pm

      It just seems like the perfect summer treat! My boys will love doing this and watching them grow!

      Reply
      • Toni - Design Dazzle says

        September 22, 2014 at 7:51 am

        It sure is a fun project with your kids. Enjoy!

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Toni medium

    Hi, I’m Toni! I love designing and decorating. Join me for home inspiration and creative living! More about me →

    Popular

    Spring/Easter

    • Setting an Easter Table
      Decorating An Easter Table
    • elegant recipes with rose
      Rose Petal Sweets
    • IMG 9043
      Simple Easter Table Decor
    • Edible Bunny Box with candy inside. - Design Dazzle
      It’s An Adorable, Edible Easter Bunny! D-I-Y

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • About Toni

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Press & Partnerships

    Toni Roberts is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com

    DesignDazzle.com is protected by copyright laws. DO NOT distribute or copy the content or share multiple images or collage images without written permission. You can use ONE Design Dazzle image only if there is a link back to DesignDazzle.com. DO NOT edit, crop, or remove watermarks from any image. Please contact me at [email protected] with any questions.

    Copyright © 2024 Design Dazzle