This easy-peasy, low-cost kids’ science experiment uses borax to grow crystal names. All kiddos will love seeing their name shimmer and sparkle in the sunlight!
Crystal names are one of our favorite science experiments EVER.
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Even though my 5 year-old can easily write her name, she never tires of seeing it, especially when it sparkles and glistens.
We decided to use the same technique used to make crystal snowflakes using borax, a common household laundry product, to make crystal names. The results were gorgeous and soon everyone in the family wanted their names in crystal too!
Getting Ready
To prep for this science activity, I gathered a few supplies:
- Pipe cleaners
- Fishing line (twine or yarn will work too_
- Pencils or wooden skewers
- Scissors
- Glasses or plastic container {one for each color}
- A container large enough to hold your name (if doing your name as a single piece written in cursive)
- Borax
- Food coloring (optional, if you want colored letters you can dye the borax solution or use colored pipe cleaners)
- Liquid measuring cup
- Tablespoon
- Heat safe mixing bowl
Shaping the Crystal Names
Once I gathered all my supplies, I called my daughter, A, over and explained that we were going to make the letters of her name and then grow crystals on them.
I had her take white pipe cleaners and use them to form the letters of her name.
I showed her the plastic container we were going to use to suspend the pipe cleaner letter in and explained that the letter had to fit in the container without touching any sides.
I wanted A to work on noticing what lines and curves made up each individual letter, so I intentionally had her form the letters one by one.
(Older children could connect a few pipe cleaners to form their name in cursive, making this activity even easier.)
Once formed, we used fishing line to suspend each letter a few inches from wooden skewers.
Making the Solution
While A finished making her letters, I began heating a large pot of water.
I knew my 5 year-old would want to do the measuring and mixing, so I made sure the water was as hot as possible to help dissolve the borax quickly, without being hot enough to scald her.
A decided she wanted to make each letter a different color, so I set out 5 quart sized plastic containers and had A measure out 3 tablespoons of borax per cup of hot water (we used 9 tablespoons per container).
Once all the borax was measured, I poured 3 cups of almost boiling water into each of the 5 containers.
A, armed with a long wooden spoon, mixed each container until the borax dissolved. She felt like a real scientist in this kids’ science experiment!
Next, she added several drops of food coloring to every container and carefully lowered each letter into the color of choice.
Waiting for the Crystals
Next came the hardest part of the kids’ science experiment – waiting!
I put the containers on a shelf and let them sit overnight where they wouldn’t be disturbed by curious hands.
After a couple hours, we saw some changes – mostly crystals forming on the sides of the container and also settling onto the bottom.
It was difficult to see what was happening to the pipe cleaners through the dark food coloring solution.
A and her little brother Q couldn’t wait to see how each of their names turned out and spent nearly an hour touching, arranging, and holding their letters up to the windows to see the crystals sparkle.
Once they were finished exploring their glistening letters, I carefully taped each child’s name up in a sunny window so they could be admired in all their sparkling glory. This kids’ science experiment was fun because it was so personal!
The Science Behind It
When borax is dissolved in water a suspension is created. A suspension is a mixture that has solid particles (the borax) that are large enough for sedimentation (settling out).
As the borax begins to settle, it starts to crystalize on all the surfaces it comes in contact with – including the pipe cleaner letters.
As the borax continues to settle out, it builds crystals on top of other borax crystals creating a thick layer.
More Kids’ Science Experiments
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Do you know how much to use if the Borax is in a liquid state already? I inherited a huge container of liquid borax when I moved into my science lab.
this is beautiful! How heavy would you say they are? I know each letter by itself is probably super light, but if I did a medium size cursive word?
The results are so beautiful, I’m definitely going to try this!
I don’t think they are that heavy but I did use fishing line to hang the cursive name by the first and last letters. I think a single string would still work as the crystal is quite stiff and strong for hanging but I just wanted a little more support and balance when hanging. I hope yours turned out well! It can be addictive!
Borax isn’t available in the UK do you know if this will work with soda crystals or borax substitute? I can get both of them and want to make these with my kids
I also have the same problem…
Any thoughts to alternatives?
I bought borax via Amazon a couple of weeks ago. I’m in the UK.
me too no problem
I also have made snowflakes with pipe cleaners and glitter, they came out very nice. My grandkids would also love their names ! I was wondering if a child could touch or play with these? Is borax a chemical?
Hi Marcia,
Borax is a chemical called sodium tetraborate. It isn’t good for people to inhale in it’s powdered form, so I either do the pouring or have my kiddos keep the borax low in the bowl when pouring it out. Once the borax is dissolved and crystallized it doesn’t pose a hazard. It hasn’t been shown to be a skin irritant but has caused lung irritation in its powdered form. I usually let my kiddos explore the crystals for a day or so, washing hands after as a precaution, then hang them to display. Hope this helps!
Hi Noirin,
Thank you for this fantastic idea and kindly-detailed-instruction.
I am planning to implement this activity next week to my children in a class(4-5 year olds).
There is a question for you. You said “Food Coloring {optional, if you want colored letters you can dye the borax solution or use colored pipe cleaners}”
Wondering coloured pipe cleaners would dye the crystal without additional food colouring. If so, it would make this activity much easier. (I don’t need to find out 25 seperate containers for each child)
I am so excited to see the children surprised and happy with the result.
Thank you.
Joanne
Hi Joanne,
In the photos above the cursive Mia was made with a blue pipe cleaner and the name Quinn was made with food coloring. The pipe cleaner color actually lasts longer too as it doesn’t fade in the sunlight. For your classroom I would use pipe cleaners, just make sure to use the fuzzy ones and not metallic ones. Also, if you are putting more than one name in a container make sure they do not touch or the kids names will crystallize together. Have fun!
Hello, I am a summer camp worker and am looking to do this activity with my kids. I have three groups of kids and each group will be doing it at a different time. Each group has 25 kids in it, so how many batches of the solution do you think I would need for 25 kids to do this project?
Hi! Thanks for this activity. Question: can I pre-mix the solution (say a couple hours ahead of time) before putting the pipe cleaners in?
Thank you!!
Hello, H ow can I introduce this scientific idea about over saturation and crystallization for 3 years old kids?
Hello Samira,
Here is the simple science of the crystals: When borax is dissolved in water a suspension is created. A suspension is a mixture that has solid particles {the borax} that are large enough for sedimentation {settling out}. As the borax begins to settle, it starts to crystalize on all the surfaces it comes in contact with – including the pipe cleaner letters. As the borax continues to settle out, it builds crystals on top of other borax crystals creating a thick layer.
Hope this helps!
I can’t find on the “recipe” how long it needs to wait in the suspension. I see it “starts to chrystalize” after an hour or so, but to thoroughly coat the pipe cleaners? Overnight? More than that?
Hello Midori,
Great question. The crystallization does start within a few hours but it will take over night and into the next day for the full crystal to form, it can vary slightly from experiment to experiment.
Hope this helps!
Kimberleigh