Step-by-step tutorial
Step 1
To make your invisible ink, mix about 3 teaspoons of baking soda with 1/2 cup room temperature water. Don't worry if the baking soda doesn't dissolve completely.
Step 2
Dip a cotton swab or lollipop stick in the invisible ink and write out a secret message or drawing on your paper.
Tip
You can cut the tips off of the cotton swabs and use the stick to make finer details.
Step 3
Let the messages dry while you make your cranberry spy juice. Use a hair dryer for faster results.
Step 4
Empty a can of cranberry sauce into a pan. Mash up the sauce and spread it into an even layer.
Step 5
To reveal your secret messages, press your paper onto the cranberry sauce with your message facing the cranberry sauce. Gently apply pressure to the paper in the sauce for about 30 seconds. Makes sure you don't submerge your paper into the sauce.
Learn more
What's going on?
This experiment uses the chemistry of acids and bases - in this case, the cranberries act as the acid, and the baking soda as the base. Cranberries contain a chemical that changes color depending on how acidic the surroundings are. You painted your secret picture with baking soda - a base. When you pressed the drawing into the cranberry sauce, the baking soda makes those spots on the paper less acidic. This makes the cranberry change color from red to blue, revealing your secret message!Final result!
Once the paper has dried, coloring your drawing with colored pencils can be a fun way to further personalize your messages.
