Floam


 

Using a similar recipe to what we used last week for Gak, you can make Floam™ . Floam is made with polystyrene (aka Styrofoam™) beads ranging in size from about 1 mm to 1/8 inch in diameter. You can make an approximation of the beads at home by grating polystyrene cups, packing material etc., although we did not try this. You can also buy Micro-beads (about 1 mm in diameter), and 1/8" beads, sometimes called "milk bottle filler" or "bean bag filler."
2 tsp. borax
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup white glue (we used Elmer's)
1/4 cup water
food coloring
an air-tight plastic bag (for mixing and storage)
5/3 cups of polystyrene beads (we used 2/3 cups micro-beads and 1 cup bean bag filler)

Dissolve 2 tsp. borax completely in 1/2 cup (4 oz.) water. Set aside.
In a separate bowl mix 1/4 cup (2 oz.) white glue and 1/4 cup (2 oz.) water. Optionally add food coloring.
Pour the glue solution into the air-tight bag. Then add 3 tbsp. (9 tsp.) of the borax/water solution to the glue solution. Do not mix them yet. You will have some borax/water solution left for another batch.
Add the polystyrene beads.
Seal bag and knead by hand until thoroughly mixed. Let stand about 15 minutes, and then knead a few minutes more.
This should produce a hard clay well suited for sculpting; for a more malleable clay, use fewer beads and optionally less of the borax solution.

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