Things that Glow: Balloons with Glow Sticks

glow stick balloons

I recently went to Wal Mart to shop for party supplies.  One of the items I wanted was a bag of balloons.  I found the balloons but also discovered a fun new kind of balloon – LED balloons!  They have a little light in them that is activated when you pull out the tab.  Then you blow them up like usual and they glow from inside.  I had to get some and the kids had a lot of fun with them.

led balloons

However, LED balloons are a bit pricey at $5.00 for a pack of 5.  That’s a dollar a balloon!

It seemed like a simple “why didn’t I think of that!” kind of concept so I wondered if I could re-create the idea on my own with some regular balloons and glow sticks.  I got a pack of 25 assorted color balloons for $1.99 and a pack of 15 glow sticks for $1.00.

balloons and glow sticks

First, have the kids crack all of the glow sticks and shake them as needed to get them glowing brightly.  I used the long skinny bracelet size sticks but the short stocky glow sticks would work well too.

We tried inserting the glow stick into the balloon before blowing it up.  While it did work, it was hard to blow up the balloon.  We found that it was easier to start with blowing up the balloon alone.

boy blowing up balloon

Once the balloon was inflated, my son wet the tip of the glow stick and wiggled it down into the balloon while holding the open end of the balloon tightly closed around the stick to keep the air from escaping.

boy putting glow stick in balloon

Once the glow stick dropped down into the balloon, he tied off the balloon.  We made lots of these balloons with different colored glow sticks and different colors of balloons.  We found that the yellow and green glow sticks were the brightest and the light colored or even clear balloons let the light shine through the brightest.  In a few balloons we even added two glow sticks to them to make them extra bright.

balloons with glow sticks

These glow balloons were not as bright as the LED balloons that I purchased at Wal Mart.  However, they were much cheaper and my kids had so much fun with them.  They kicked them, played volleyball with them, and even jumped over them in some new game they made up.

Glow balloons would also make for a fun decoration at an evening party!

Kim About Kim

Kim is a homeschooling mom of two children. When she isn't on a nature hike with her kids, she can be found scrapbooking about their adventures and possibly sneaking a bite of chocolate. She writes about motherhood and family fun at Savor the Days.

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Comments

  1. Parenting help is needed to cope up with the rapidly changing education system and modes of learning. New-age have to deal with huge pressures especially when it comes to kids’ education making parenting help almost a necessity.

  2. This looks like fun! It would be great to take on summer night and play with these balloons!

  3. Great idea! I filled my son’s room with balloons for his birthday yesterday. Wish I had seen this idea then.

  4. This is great! My 7 year old loves all things that glow. He would love this. Got to try it!

  5. Oh my! Glow sticks and balloons! My boys will be in heaven! We will be doing this very soon…thanks for the inspiration!

  6. that’s a pretty cool thing to do with balloons and glowsticks

  7. I LOVE IT!!! What a fantastic idea!

  8. This looks like so much fun!

  9. How fun! My girls would just love those! I’ll have to make some. :-)

  10. These are so fun! Great in the bath too :)

  11. Glow sticks and balloons . This looks like so much nice!

  12. That’s an awesome idea! My son and I have played with glow sticks in the bath tub with the lights turned off. They make the water look very cool, and he loves it.

  13. Kim, this idea rocks…I have everything I need to make it happen…TY.

  14. Very interesting, thanks for sharing.

  15. Love this idea. Going to use for my daughters party. Curious where you found 15 Glow sticks for a dollar?

  16. Nice and interesting post. Thanks for sharing. Got some good ideas for my kids enjoyment

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