Looking for ways to make kinetic sand at home? this is the best recipe out there! it took me over 5 hours to get it just right and it has been tested and made by many. Now, it is your turn!
I saw the kinetic sand recipe video from King of Random, where they tested a few kinetic sand recipes to see if they could get one as close as the store-bought ones. This got me inspired that I too can experiment and make my own perfect recipe too.
Most recipes shared online or on Pinterest create a sort of moon sand recipe as opposed to kinetic sand. Moon sand is sand that can be molded but it does not have the stretchy quality that kinetic sand has. and that my friends, is what we ar looking for!
Want to learn how to make Moon Sand? you just need two ingredients
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Testing different Kinetic Sand Recipes
In the king of random video, I learned that liquid starch (Sta-Flo) is the key ingredient to make kinetic sand stretchy. Something that surprised me from all the videos or blog post recipes I saw was that no one was mentioning this key ingredient. For my recipe, I knew it had to have that!
So I kept trying and reading and I saw that everyone was using cornstarch, some added a teaspoon, some added half the amount of sand the recipe called for. No one explained to me what was key about this ingredient.
It comes to a point where you can’t read the full internet anymore and you have to get your hands dirty and try it for yourself.
I tested the recipe from momdot.com which turned great but the sand kept sticking to our hands. So it was good but not perfect. It could have been that our sand quality was different than what she used.
This I will show you is based on me purchasing the bags from the Dollar Tree.
Recipe #2
I then tried a completely different kinetic recipe from (can’t remember who because it was such a waste I threw it out and delete the recipe photo). I learned that adding half the amount of cornstarch to sand, it will make a glue attach to the cornstarch and not the sand. Off to the garbage it went!
Recipe #3
#4 – the winner Recipe!
Down to my last bag of sand. A green sandbag, I used it to test this recipe, this was my last chance for the day to make it right! I didn’t have any other bags so this was it or would need to try a different day.
Let my research be your benefit! May I present you …. drum roll…. the best no-fail kinetic sand recipe! Created by me approved by my little learner!
How to make DIY Kinetic Sand
Kinetic Sand Recipe
Notes
Some recipes have used softener instead of Sta-Flo. I find that to be very watery so if trying that you might need a bit more sand.
Clear glue blends better with the sand while white glue will show little white streaks, but it works!
The glue will dry after a few days, and it won’t stretch as the first day.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of play colored sand (I’m using generic one from Dollar Tree)
- 1/4 tsp dish soap (I’m using Dawn)
- 1 Tbs Elmer’s clear glue | https://amzn.to/2Tfnzaz
- ½ tsp [liquid starch Sta-Flo | https://amzn.to/2zKA1IA
Instructions
- In a large bowl mix the glue, dish soap, and liquid starch (Sta-Flo) with a spoon until it creates a sticky slime. It’s ok that it sticks to the bowl.
- Add 1/4 of a cup of sand into the slime mixture and mix with a spoon trying to blend all the sand into the slime.
- Continue adding a little sand at a time and continue to blend it with the spoon.
- When the spoon stops working to blend in the sand start using your hands.
- Stretch the slime and where glue is exposed add sand and fold in.
- Continue until all sand has been blended in and absorbed.
- Go play!
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