Have you ever wondered how to make slime without borax? This gak recipe is only two ingredients and is Borax free!  Yep, only two ingredients and you will be able to really impress your kids and keep them entertained for hours!

There are so many fun sensory play recipes to try. You can make your own moon sand for hours of fun! And if you love crazy concoctions try making this amazing oobleck!

How to make slime without borax hand holding green slime

How to Make Slime Without Borax

Update! I saw on the Today Show how Borax can burn kids while making slime.  I was shocked at the severity of the skin burns and checked to make sure my recipe was completely safe. Which it is! To be extra cautious always have kids fully wash their hands after playing.

gak recipe ingredients a bottle of white Elmer's glue and a bottle of sta-flo liquid starch

Ingredients

Whether you call it gak or slime it is still the same thing and easy to make. You might already have these simple ingredients at home! This recipe is easy and really works! (Affiliate links included in this section.)

In this recipe, the liquid starch is the slime activator.  In my other slime recipe baking soda and contact solution make the magic happen (we also add shaving cream to make it extra fluffy). Try adding more of the activator ingredients to get the desired consistency.  Be careful though…. too much will make it stiff.  First, be sure to spend plenty of time kneading the slime before adding more ingredients. Be sure to slowly add extra ingredients so the reaction will work. The slime forms slowly sometimes.

The best part it is a safe recipe.  This recipe uses liquid starch instead of borax. This is more diluted. Why? Sometimes Borax can cause skin burns, so just to be safe we opted for a different recipe! 

We can’t stop making this slimy stretchy concoction at our house. Make this super easy two-ingredient recipe with your kids knowing it is safe.  Read below for the gak recipe with step by step instructions.

Two Ingredient Slime Recipe

Mix equal parts of liquid starch and glue together. We placed 1/4 cup of liquid starch and 1/4 cup white school glue into a sandwich bag and added about 3 drops of green food coloring. We do have the best luck with Elmer’s white school glue. Using a ziplock bags makes this mess free.

three drops of green food coloring being added to a quarter of cup liquid  starch inside a zip lock bag

Next, add in 1/4 cup glue into the bag.

a quarter of cup of glue being added to colored liquid cornstarch

Mix well for the reaction to occur. When it starts to form a solid blob, you will know it is changing into slime. This will take time, be patient and allow it to form.

There might be a bit of liquid that does not mix in, it is alright if this happens. When at this stage, it should be ready. You just need to remove the blob and discard the bag with the extra liquid.

the ziplock bag has been sealed and ingredients are being mixed by hand in the ziplock bag

Take it out of the bag and have fun! Slime is so mesmerizing! It is hard to keep from touching it which makes it a wonderful sensory activity.

I really hope you enjoy this homemade gak no borax recipe as much as we do.

Here is a printable slime recipe without borax also known as gak recipe!

Slime Recipe Without Borax

Whether you call it gak or slime it is still the same thing and easy to make. You might already have these two ingredients at home!
Keyword crafts
Prep Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • liquid starch
  • white school glue
  • liquid food coloring
  • zip loc bag

Instructions

  • Mix equal parts of liquid starch and glue together. We placed 1/4 cup of liquid starch and 1/4 cup white school glue into a sandwich bag and added about 3 drops of green food coloring.

Notes

We do have best luck with Elmer’s school glue.

What does liquid starch do to slime?

Glue is a liquid polymer made up of long, repeating, and identical strands. This means that the tiny molecules in the glue are in strands like a chain. When you add the liquid starch, the strands of the polymer glue hold together, giving it a slimy feel. The liquid starch contains sodium borate and acts as a cross-linker that connects all the long strands. To make slime with glue and liquid starch, mix until the combined substance becomes thicker and rubber-like slime!

Where do you buy liquid starch?

We find our liquid starch in the laundry section at the grocery store. We use Sta-flo starch like this. (affiliate link). Looking for more ways to impress your kids?  Now that you have liquid starch to create slime you can also use the liquid starch to make the coolest marbleized paper.

sty flo liquid starch bottle

More Easy Ways to Make Slime!

Check out all these recipes!  I have found  14 of the best slime recipes. You will find magnetic, mood-changing, bubbling, spaghetti, and more! It is easy to create homemade slime and it can be pretty forgiving. Let your kids get creative and make it their way.

They can also try using glitter glue for a glittery concoction! Kids love the sparkle of glitter slime. I have even seen a slime recipe that calls for foam beads to make floam.

Here are the easy slime recipes we make again and again at our home. You will find that most of these recipes are made without borax powder. Instead, they use ingredients like liquid starch and contact lens solution for the slime activator. Keep in mind that liquid starch does contain a little bit of borax and contact solution contains boric acid. Another, safe activator combination to use for slime is baking soda and saline solution.

I think you will find that the following recipes are safe and won’t irritate the skin. However, always make sure to wash hands after playing with slime, and adult supervision is best.

This clear glue slime recipe needs to set a few days but is super stretchy and CLEAR!

clear slime that is being stretched to the point of being see through by two smiling young girls

Have you tried butter slime? It is more like a stretchy clay.

a white plate with a stick of butter and butter knife for making easy three ingredient butter slime

This fantastic fluffy slime is a huge hit at our house!

kids playing with blue and green fluffy slime

Check out my glow in the dark slime recipe. Now you know how to make slime without borax you can even make it glow!

glow inhale dark slime recipe

Yes, you can make slime WITHOUT glue!

a pink ball of slime made without glue

Here are the best tips for making slime less sticky

a child playing with blue less sticky slime

Slime Tips and Tricks

  • Borax is good for squishy slime, but not ideal for a long-lasting or super stretchy slime.
  • Use liquid starch when you want it to last longer.
  • Keep it in a sealed baggie or airtight container and it should last for a couple of weeks or even months. Toss it out if it grows mold or dries out.
  • Too liquidy add more glue 1 tablespoons at a time. Be sure to mix well after each Tablespoon. Remember it comes together slowly.
  • Too sticky try adding more starch 1 tablespoon at a time, again mixing well.
  • If you get slime on the carpet, clothing, or in the hair remove it with white vinegar. For clothing soak the affected area in vinegar for a minute then rub to dissolve. Wash and dry as usual.

More Kids Activities

I have loads of more kids activities to keep children engaged and learning.  No reason to be bored!

Keep kids laughing with these kids jokes and these funny knock knock jokes. Kids loved these jokes.

Boredom Buster Activities These activities utilize your computer, paper, and printer!  Make fun paper toys for hours of fun perfect for a rainy day.

50 Kids Crafts and Activities This large list of kids activities keep kids engaged in crafting and playing! These are perfect ideas for summer fun!

Don’t forget to fill out a summer bucket list!

I would love to keep you fully stocked with creative ideas, yummy recipes, fun crafts, and loads of free printables. Subscribe to Skip to my Lou to get new ideas delivered to your inbox. Follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram for all my latest updates.


About Cindy Hopper

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Comments

  1. My class had so much fun making this for our Science night at school, so! easy to do.:)

  2. Add borax to the mix. The ratio is 2 parts glue, 1 part starch, and 1 part borax. The more borax the harder it becomes.

  3. I made this today for my boys ages 3 & 4 they loved it but it is still too sticky even after playing with it for a while. Is there anyway to speed up the process of making it less sticky?

  4. We made this tonight and I thought it wasn’t working either. It was VERY “WET” when we took it out of the bag and it stuck to our hands a lot. But the more we played with it the better it got! Very messy but my boys (ages 5 & 8) LOVED it!!

  5. I’m surprised! We made this tonight and we’re
    Very disappointed as it didn’t come out. We used
    1/3 cup Elmer’s glue and 3 drops of red food coloring
    And then added 1/3 cup of liquid starch. It never
    Formed a ball. We kept mixing and mixing in the
    Baggie. Sigh. I’m sure I missed something.

  6. I have been looking for projects to do with the girl that I mentor in school. I am going to try making the slime with her. Looks fun.

  7. I use to do this in the Art Room when I was in High School all the time. Just throw a little acrylic paint in there instead of food coloring, it all works the same.

  8. Great idea…Im a new follower and posted this on my blog…to track back to your site..

    Thanks

  9. Does clag school glue work or does it have to be more of a wood glue consistency?

  10. I found this recipe because I was looking for a GAK recipe without using Borax. Borax is a poison and I am not comfortable with my children handling it. I looked up the ingredients of this brand of liquid starch and it contains Borax. I wanted to let other moms know in case they were interested. You can make home-made liquid starch with corn starch.

  11. I just made this with three children – we used fine glitter instead of food coloring and at first I thought it was horrible – it was very stringy and didn’t stick together at all, plus it was super… “juicy” I guess is the word. But I kept kneading it for brief periods and washing my hands in between, letting it sit for a little while, and after a while the consistency was excellent. I think the trick is to get the extra liquid off and then it’s good. Just for comparison’s sake I live almost at sea level in a dry climate and I used Sta Flo brand liquid starch and Elmer’s glue. It turns out a four ounce bottle yields just over a third of a cup (it should be half a cup because 4 oz is 1/2 c, but I guess it sticks to the inside and you don’t get that much out unless you’re REALLY patient). So if everyone has their own 4 oz bottle of glue you can just measure out the starch and then have everyone squeeze their glue into the bag. You could use the bag in a cup trick to hold it upright so it doesn’t spill.
    Also – if you have extra liquid just add more glue to it and you’ll get more gack! It worked for me.

  12. My 8 year old has to do a “How to” demonstration in front of the class. He is going to have the entire class join in on the fun and make it at the same time. We tested several methods and this one was best for the whole group demonstration- all you need is Sta Flo, Elmer’s Glue, food color and a baggie (or two). Don’t forget to mix and mix and mix! We then needed to drain the left over water/ingredients and place in another clean bag. He can’t wait to share it at school!

  13. I just made this, with the exact formula (Elmer’s, and sta-flo) and it didnt turn our right. I bought real gak from target last week, and decided to make some on my own.i feel like its missing another ingredient. It smells like gak, but it’s harder and less like slime than the real stuff. Don’t get me wrong it’s still fun to make, but don’t expect it to be exactly like the original

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