A 15 degree day has to be good for something, right? Blow a frozen bubble! This is one of our favorite winter activities. We actually do it without even leaving our living room. No need to bundle up and go outside, just open the window and stick your head out!
UPDATE: I've been getting a huge response to this post and questions so here are a few extra tips:
- The temps do need to be COLD. I find that for results it needs to be at least in the 20s F, but it works much. much better if it's in the teens, single digits, or best of all, below zero.
- Be patient. The bubble can take up to a minute to freeze. Higher temps = longer freezing time.
- Do you live in a warm climate? You can still make frozen bubbles! (See end of post.)
- I use regular, commercial bubble solution. For some reason, wands that are thicker are better. I have this one cheap thin wand, and I can never get it to work with that one.
It's a fun change from your normal winter play and shattering the frozen bubbles is quite a treat. Plus, you get in a bit of science learning in there too.
We were inspired by this post at Archimedes Notebook.
P.S. If you live in a location where the temperatures do not dip below freezing (lucky you) I you can do this by putting bubbles on a plate and sticking it in your fridge's freezer. Oddly, it takes longer to freeze -- probably because of all the other stuff in the freezer? The bonus part, however, is that you don't come away with a frozen face, too!
Have you ever tried this?
Raising a Happy Child says
I read about it on the other blog and felt deprived - I've never tried when I lived in suitable climates. Looks fascinating.
ANONYMOUSE3 says
I'm going to try this on Thursday...though the temperature may go above freezing that day. boooo. We like it around -10 C (14F) or so...perfect!
Erica MomandKiddo says
Yup, I'd say that's a great temp for blowing frozen bubbles!
Amy says
We just tried this...it was 10F outside. Did not freeze. We even caught them and let it sit for 20-30 seconds. Nada. :/ I guess I will try it next week when it is below 0
Erica MomandKiddo says
At 10 degrees it didn't work? Hmmm. I couldn't get ours to work today because it was too windy and they kept blowing away! Definitely try it again when it's colder because it is really cool when it works.
Chelle says
We had some pretty cold temps but I was still having a hard time getting this to work so I decided to boil our homemade solution (everyone was making snow by throwing boiling hot water in the air). The boiling bubbles helped. Some of my bubbles stuck to the deck without popping and froze in about a minute. And a bonus was throwing the boiling bubble solution in the air, it makes snow and bubbles!
Erica MomandKiddo says
Great tip. Thanks, Chelle.
Chrissy says
I left my bubbles outside once in the winter and so they were cold when I was blowing them so they froze more quickly and at a higher temperature, so if you are having trouble maybe try putting your bubble solution in the freezer for a bit?
Erica MomandKiddo says
What a smart idea, Chrissy! I'm going to try that next winter. Thank you!
Heather says
LOL, Worked fine for me tonight! It's -34C (-29.2 F) Bubbles were freezing without a problem! We do this every year- it's great
Erica MomandKiddo says
Oh my! Those temps will freeze my toes without a problem!
Jodie Fitz says
Thanks for the temperature input 🙂 - I added you to our post.
Have a wonderful week ~ jodie
Cooper says
I read somewhere that the solutions isn't freeze as well as homemade. Last week we tried 15 parts water to 1 part Dawn and it worked. 🙂
Erica MomandKiddo says
I'm going to try a different solution next time the temps dropped. During our recent cold spell it was too windy to get them to work. Thanks for the tip.
Brenna says
I tried it last year it didn't work 🙁 I will try it next year
Erica MomandKiddo says
Hmmm. Yes, the outside temperatures need to be pretty low.