Summertime is bubble time!
When I was young, summertime meant bubbles. I made homemade bubble solution and blew giant bubbles in all kinds of crazy shapes, and I used colored bubble solution to make bubble prints on paper that I turned into stationery and envelopes. Summer doesn’t last long and neither do bubbles, so enjoy them both as they float on by. Here’s a recipe for bubble solution, instructions for two cool bubble wands, and everything you need to know to make your own bubble print paper.
Bubble Solution
Level: Easy
Time: 5 minutes
Materials:
•Liquid dishwashing or hand soap
•Bottled water (plain tap water doesn’t work well)
•A large flat-bottomed container or basin
•Glycerol – this is also known as glycerine (xīgānyóu, 稀甘油; or gānyóu, 甘油). You can buy it at most pharmacies. As an alternative, you can also use Karo syrup, which may be available at import stores.
Mix the soap, water and glycerol (or Karo syrup) in your basin. Because every soap and water combination is different, have fun experimenting with the ratios to see which works best. One popular solution is: 1 part soap, 10 parts water and 1/2 part glycerine or Karo syrup. You can also try: 500ml (1/2 cup) soap, 4.5L (41/2 cups) water, and 60ml glycerine (4tbs). Some sources say bubble solution gets better if you let it sit for a while. You can experiment by leaving yours alone for a night and trying it out the next day.
Cup Wand
Level: Easy
Time: 5 minutes
Materials:
•A paper cup
•A straw
•Utility knife or scissors
1. Cut a small cross-hatch into the side of the paper cup. |
2. Insert the straw into the hole until about 2 centimeters of the straw are poking through to the other side. |
How to blow bubbles with your cup wand
1. Dip the open rim of the cup into the bubble solution and lift it out.
2. Blow through the straw. The air will blow out through the rim of the cup and create a long bubble.
Parent Tip:
Make sure your kids are not sucking in the bubble solution.
Cone Wand
Level: Easy
Time: 5 minutes
Materials:
•A piece of paper
•A piece of masking tape
•Scissors
1. Roll your paper into a cone with a tip. |
2. Use masking tape to tape the cone together.Try not to tape it at the point. |
3. Use scissors to cut off the point of the cone, giving it a wide mouth. |
4. Cut the base of the cone so that the edge is even. |
How to blow bubbles with your cone wand
1. Before you use your wand for the first time, dip the base of it into the bubble solution and let it soak up solution for 30 seconds.
2. Take your wand out and tap it to get rid of extra solution.
3. Start blowing into the narrow tip with the wide base facing downwards.
4. As the bubble grows, you can begin to raise the wand so that it is horizontal. If you’d like, raise it further so that you are tilting it upwards.
5. To release your bubble from your wand, give the wand a quick flick.
Bubble Prints
There are two different methods for making bubble prints. The first is simply blowing bubbles onto a sheet of paper. The second involves creating a mass of bubbles on a cookie sheet and then placing a piece of paper on top and letting the bubbles pop beneath it. Things can get kind of messy, so wear some old clothes or a smock!
Method One
Level: Intermediate
Time: 10-15 minutes
Materials:
•Bubble solution
•Several containers for holding bubble solution (paper cups work well)
•Food coloring or paint (watercolor, poster, or tempura paints all work fine)
•Construction or watercolor paper in a light or white color
•Newspaper
•A straw
•A cookie sheet or a large, flat pan
•A paper cup
•A smock
1. Cover your work surface with newspaper.
2. Put down a cookie sheet or a large, flat pan.
3. Fill a paper cup with bubble solution and add a few drops of food coloring or paint and mix them into the water. If the colors aren’t as vivid as you’d like, slowly add more drops of color.
4. Place the paper cup onto the cookie sheet or pan. Using the straw, start blowing bubbles in the cup. Keep blowing until the bubbles slowly rise up and overflow the cup, landing on the cookie sheet.
5. Take your paper and lay it lightly on top of the bubbles. Wait for them to pop and then lift off the paper and let it dry, bubble side up.
Method Two
Level: Intermediate
Time: 10-15 minutes
Materials:
•Bubble solution
•Several containers for holding bubble solution (paper cups work well)
•Food coloring or paint (watercolor, poster, or tempura paints all work fine)
•Construction or watercolor paper in a light or white color
•Newspaper
•A small bubble wand
•A smock
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1. Cover your work surface with newspaper. Pour bubble solution into several small containers. Drop a few drops of different colors of food coloring or paint into each container and mix them into the water. If the colors aren’t as vivid as you’d like, slowly add more drops of color. |
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2. Use your bubble wand to blow bubbles onto a sheet of paper. Let them pop naturally or pop them yourself. |
