It’s bubble season at our house. The snow clothes are put away, yet it’s not quite warm enough for the pool, so out comes the bubbles. We recently made homemade bubbles, then found household items to blow the bubbles through.
Recipe for Homemade Bubbles:
- 4 cups Water
- 1 cup Dish Soap – we had Palmolive, but I’ve seen Ajax, Joy, Dawn used.
- 1/4 cup Corn Syrup
- container – plastic tub, gallon jug
(I doubled this recipe to get what you see below in the gallon jug, but used less than half for what you see in the plastic container, a little goes a long way.)
Pour and mix all of the ingredients into a bowl or jug. I suggest using a funnel to help with the pouring if you’re using a plastic jug container. Using a jug is great so you can shake it up really good, but you could whisk it all together in a bowl too. Let the solution settle a little, then pour it into a flat container, like a plastic tub. This way it’s easier to dip your items into the solution.
Now it’s time to blow big beautiful bubbles! We used all kinds of items to blow our bubbles, things from around the house: rubber bands, metal rings, bubble wands, wiffle ball, even the top end of a salt shaker – our cousin got lots of great bubbles out of that! Anything item enclosed all the way around should work!
We even had a heart shaped cookie cutter. My kids loved that circle bubbles came out of a heart shape.
Speaking of bubbles, Mom Advice poses this question: Is Homemade Better? Have fun this Spring making big beautiful bubbles!
Going to try right now. And add a glow stick to the bubbles tonight, supposed to glow in the dark.
Someone gave me a recipe for 6 cups of water 1 cup corn syrup and one cup palmolive dishsoap.. This does not work what went wrong? Any suggestions Thanks
I heard that Dawn changed the recipe for thier soap.. it needs to sit out open for a few hours before mixing, to let the alcohol dissolve.. making 5 gallons for Vacation Bible Study next week… I hope it works!!!
sorry that would be … to let the alcohol dissipate… still hoping it works out ok! otherwise i will have 1000 kids a little upset that we dont have bubbles to blow.
If you have trouble getting bubbles, you may not be using enough Dawn to water and Dawn works best. I would suggest you use more dish soap. It should feel slimy slick on your hands. Then the proportions are right. The Karo is for strength and firmer bubbles.
i tryed that but it dint work!!!!!!!!
I made the bubbles today because I was out of store bought ones. They did not blow any bubbles, I would not suggest making them BUY INSTEAD.
your right my dint work either so i just use palomolive and water and then i shake and it blows bubbles
I’m using this recipe not for kids but actually for dogs! i work at a doggy day care and they LOVE bubbles, its hilarious to see them all jumping trying to catch them! We go through them so fast that i decided to make a batch of my own!
Marie, I FINALLY got a chance to make these for the kids…and they’re a hit! Thanks!!
I am a sucker for things homemade – linked to this in my weekly roundup (link to my post is under my name). We discovered that doing bubbles in the wading pool makes for a much less messy toddler. :>) Thanks!
BUBBLES ARE ALWAYS FUN AND SOOTHING FOR ANY AGE. EVEN GROWN UPS LOVE ENJOYING BLOWING BUBBLES FOR YOUR KIDS.
Fabulous idea Marie. Guess what we will be doing later in the week. Bubbles are always a huge hit with the twins.
I made homemade bubbles all the time when I was a kid. I just used water and dish soap though.
Thanks for the fun recipe. My kiddos are loving bubbles right now! Such a great form of entertainment. I like the idea of using odds and ends around the house to experiment with to make the bubbles.
I LOVE YOU. The bubbles my kids got in their Easter baskets is horrible. I’m going to make homemade bubbles for them this week. Just need a bit more dish soap. Seriously–I LOVE YOU.
(When are you going to write a book anyway?) :)
I going right now to gather supplies. Thanks.
For bubble “wands,” we like to use those green plastic baskets you buy strawberries in- they make grape-like clusters of bubbles. Fun!
Thanks for the recipe. We got out bubbles this weekend for the first time since my daughter’s first birthday (she’s 18 months now), and she LOVED it! She kept giggling and even fell off the couch (but landed safely on her bottom) trying to catch them. Because, yes, we were blowing bubbles inside – it was cold and rainy outside! :)
Thanks for the great, EASY recipe! Love your site!!
So much fun, I love this! Thanks for the idea, I’ll be linking.
Oh, my son will definitely be doing this over the summer. So fun!
How fun!! We just rinsed out another gallon jug to make a fresh batch for this year. The Easter Bunny happened to leave two new wands from the dollar store too :) I haven’t tried the Karo Syrup version, but the glycerin is AMAZING! I can’t believe how long the bubbles hold the shape.
We also discovered that if we use some fun scented dish soap that the leftovers can double as a mosquito catcher if left overnight :) Gotta love that!!
Oh my gosh homemade bubbles, why didn’t I think to google that? We go through bubbles like crazy around here!
Cindy – With the amount of water and soap added to this mix, the sugar doesn’t get sticky. It pretty much the same solution from store bought bubbles.
Donna – The Corn Syrup is added in place of Glycerin or even plain ol’ sugar from some recipes. The Glycerin (or sugar substance) gives it a little extra strength. Here’s an answer from Wiki Answers.
Good question!
I love this blog! I have “Bubble solution in bulk” on my shopping list. Well, I did.
What does Karo syrup do?
The Karo strengthens the bubbles so they don’t pop so quickly. They will float for a longer period of time.
Is it sticky with the Karo’s syrup in there?????
It pretty much has a slick, slimy feel when it is the right mix. . .same as the commercial kind, but better and cheaper!
oooh! Looks like fun! And I’ve been trying to figure out a way to use up my Karo syrup since I try to not to bake much anymore!
I’ve used dish soap before for bubbles when we ran out of the store bought ones and the kids wanted to blow bubbles. However, I’ve never put water or anything else in with it. I like that recipe though, because it will go so much farther, saving me money, than just using the dish soap by itself. Thanks for the bubble recipe.