# Kids these days: Floam and Moon Sand **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 12, 2006, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466 "2006-09-12T22:01:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2006, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/1 "2006-09-12T22:01:57Z")
Being of the Play Dough generation, I can’t help but enviously wonder if the fancy new substances such as [Floam](http://www.buyfloam.com) and [Moon Sand](http://www.toysrus.com/sm-moon-sand-kit--pi-2316774.html) are as cool and as much fun as they seem to be. Any Doper parents or children-at-heart who have experienced them? What are they made out of? Do they smell funky? Enquiring minds want to know… ---
**Author:** ![melondeca](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@melondeca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/melondeca)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/2 "2006-09-13T01:32:18Z")
Playing with Floam is not nearly as fun as playing with Play-Doh. Play-Doh has more substance; it is smoother and has that smell. Floam is like playing with tiny styrafoam balls all stuck together in a clump. Oh wait, that is Floam. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/3 "2006-09-13T01:41:49Z")
Floam and Moon Sand - The Lost Zappa Children ---
**Author:** ![myskepticsight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cc9497/32.png) [@myskepticsight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/myskepticsight)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/4 "2006-09-13T02:54:29Z")
Anyone remember Gak? Do they still make that crap? It felt weird and slimy and made nice farting noises when you stuck your finger in it. They even made smelly Gak - I remember seeing some that was suppposed to smell like hot dogs? Disgusting. Play Doh is the king. I’ve considered buying some Floam, but it’s kind of expensive to just buy it to see what it’s like. And I don’t live at home, so I haven’t seen any of my little cousins who probably own some. ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/5 "2006-09-13T03:36:11Z")
Never played with moon sand. Floam is stupid and no fun. gak was fun, but my mom stopped letting us play with it because it was oily and stained things like the walls and tables and was impossible to get out of the carpet. Model Magic, though, is FUN. It’s expensive, but we got it every once in a great while to play with. It’s light and fluffy and actually holds shape and then it dries into a sort of flexible, foamy little sculpture. After it was dry, you could draw on it with markers. ---
**Author:** ![monica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@monica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monica)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/6 "2006-09-13T03:50:41Z")
_Nothing_ will ever beat playdoh. Seriously. That stuff is awesome. Does anyone here remember making it in elementary school? And as for the magic sand, come on now- that’s what the beach is for! ---
**Author:** ![foxymoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d26b3c/32.png) [@foxymoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foxymoron)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/7 "2006-09-13T11:57:03Z")
My kid won’t play with Floam because it smells bad. ---
**Author:** ![Caprese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9a28c/32.png) [@Caprese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caprese)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/8 "2006-09-13T12:33:29Z")
Gak is easy to make at home. All you need is glue, water and a bit of Borax, food coloring optional. I think Gak is great, and kids about 3 and a half and up really enjoy it. If you play with Gak on the right surface, it works out okay, but yeah, it can get in your clothes, but I’ve never seen it not wash out. I’ve played with Floam and the mess does not make up for what little fun it is. Have not seen Magic Sand. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/9 "2006-09-13T12:58:34Z")
Floam is Satan’s Spoo. It sticks like a bastard to everything. It is not as portrayed in the commercials at all. Even my kids think it sucks. ---
**Author:** ![Marienee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@Marienee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marienee)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/10 "2006-09-13T13:50:58Z")
Haven’t tried moon sand yet. My 4 and 6 like Mars Sand, which is regular sand treated somehow (silicone?) to make it entirely impervious to water. It’s cool, you can only build with it under water. When you take it out of the water it turns instantly to regular dry sand. They got some Floam, played with it for awile, said “ick” and went back to play clay. Play Doh is great stuff, though it’s relatively expensive here in Holland (you can get the knock offs cheaper but they suck) so I usually make my own. I have become a veritable expert and can now make play clay in every form known to man, including chocolate, wood, and peanut butter, lol. (Wood is great for lopsided dishes and so on to give to grandparents, it dries, well, just like wood). Though truly their favorite is plain old oil-water-flour-salt modeling clay. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/11 "2006-09-13T20:08:31Z")
Does Floam bounce? Silly Putty bounces. ---
**Author:** ![Caprese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9a28c/32.png) [@Caprese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caprese)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2006, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/12 "2006-09-13T20:23:20Z")
Floam just sort of sticks to everything. Gak can bounce, but not quite like Silly Putty. You can make homemade playdough with KoolAid, which makes it smell good. Example: make orange playdough with orange-flavored KoolAid. The kids like it. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/13 "2006-09-14T01:58:25Z")
Floam is yucky, but my kids are dying to try Moon Sand (sounds just like the Mars Sand mentioned above). ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/14 "2006-09-14T01:59:43Z")
Moon sand rocks. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/15 "2006-09-14T03:08:49Z")
I want you all to know that after looking at this OP last night, I had a dream about new-fangled transparent play-dough. It was wicked cool. ---
**Author:** ![ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2006, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kids-these-days-floam-and-moon-sand/372466/16 "2006-09-17T02:55:30Z")
I _almost_ bought some Floam today, but resisted the urge based on the lukewarm critiques of this thread. Looking at it in the flesh, it seems to be little tine styrafoam balls suspended in a Gak-like substance, which just seems…icky.