I bought slime off an Instagram shop… Here’s what happened

We’ve all seen slime videos at this point, right? I know I’ve spent more time than I’m willing to admit on Instagram’s many slime accounts.

But is this stuff as fun and satisfying as it looks— or is it all an elaborate editing trick? I decided that I couldn’t wait any longer to find out.

There are plenty of slime shops out there— but I selected the shop SlimeObsidian for one reason: all their slimes have a “Level” of Beginner, Intermediate or Expert.

I had several questions: What makes a slime easy or difficult? What is a slime expert? How do you become one?

To answer these questions, I ordered three different slimes: one rated Beginner, one Intermediate and one Expert.

Baja Blast Jelly is exactly what it says on the tin. It has the texture one would expect from slime. It’s gooey, squishy and a little bit sticky — but not sticky enough to be a nuisance.

The slime, as advertised, had the lemon-lime scent of Baja Blast. It also came with lemon-shaped charms mixed into the slime. They contrasted the slime color well and didn’t interfere with its texture.

There was one major drawback, however: it expanded upon being handled. I had to throw out a small chunk of slime to fit it back into the container. If you want to avoid this headache, make sure you have a different container to store your slime in.

I decided to get wild with my Intermediate slime: Kiwi Cubes.

It has a similar texture to Baja Blast Jelly, but it has some more solid cubes mixed in that can be crushed into pieces until the slime is one uniform texture.

It also had some cute kiwi-shaped charms mixed in. Like Baja Blast Jelly, these did not get in the way of the texture at all.

Crushing a cube feels like crushing the juicy part of an apple slice between your fingers. They’re easy to crush once you manage to get a grip on one. This can be a bit of a challenge, especially when trying to crush smaller pieces.

This slime was a bit too sticky the first time I played with it. To its credit, the stickiness lessened once the cubes were mixed in. The kiwi scent was my favorite out of the three I bought. It was sweet and reminded me of fruity candy.

Ultraviolet is a “clear” slime. It’s unscented and, as the name suggests, somewhat translucent — though its translucence disappears when it’s played with and is replaced with a lighter, foamy appearance.

It is similar in texture to Baja Blast Jelly — but more liquid-y. That means that this slime is not just sticky: it will attach itself to anything it touches. And, it will not come off.

I learned this the hard way. I made the mistake of testing this slime over a paper bowl. Once I poured the slime into the bowl, it was clear it wasn’t going to come out.

Despite this mishap, I continued trying to play with the slime. It stuck to my hands — pulling apart with a nice popping sound. It would have been satisfying — if it weren’t for the fact that I was getting slime all over my arms and lap.

I rushed to my dorm’s bathroom to clean myself up and accidentally locked myself out of my room. Once the evidence of my slimy misadventures was as erased as it was going to get, I had to walk to the campus security office in my pajamas to get my room unlocked. 0/10 would not recommend that experience.

Suffice to say, I have a bit of a bias against this slime, but I think with adequate preparation — and perhaps some gloves — you could have a good time with it.

SlimeObsidian’s level system seems to be based on how sticky the slime is. If you’re considering purchasing from this slime shop, take this into account. Stick to beginner if you want a more casual experience and try intermediate or expert if you’re okay with more cleanup.

Overall, I would recommend SlimeObsidian’s slime — or any slime for that matter. It’s a great way to relieve stress, and yes, it’s as satisfying as all those Instagram videos make it seem.