Class 3 of 3

The purpose of this course to share knowledge, techniques, and enthusiasm for blowing bubble gum. Perhaps it might even rekindle the waning interest in this delightful pastime.

Requirements for this class

▪ Completed Classes 1 & 2

▪ 4-5 pieces of bubble gum (start chewing all of them now)

▪ A desire to learn and have fun

▪ Willingness to practice

▪ Not afraid of getting a little sticky

▪ Bubble Gum Rules & Etiquette

▪ Basic Techniques Review

▪ Advanced Techniques

▪ Bubble Gum History

▪ Bubble Gum Games

▪ Practice Session

▪ Always throw gum away in the trash.

▪ Brush teeth very well afterwards.

▪ Do not swallow gum.

▪ Never pop someone else's bubble without permission.

In addition to the rules, try to follow bubble gum etiquette.

▪ Don’t chew with your mouth open.

▪ Don’t chew gum when teaching, speaking or presenting to an audience of any size.

▪ Avoid distracting actions when people are trying to be quiet or trying to focus like in meetings, classes, or libraries.

▪ No cracking or popping

▪ No big bubbles

▪ No blowing, popping or cracking gum during face-to-face conversations.

▪ Avoid blowing, popping or cracking gum around people who find it rude, annoying, or disgusting.

▪ Don’t rush and blow too hard.

▪ Use enough gum.

▪ Chew until all the sugar or sweetener is out of the gum.

▪ Shape the gum like a bowl that is thicker in the middle and thinner towards the edges.

▪ Push tongue into the gum only once.

▪ Widen or flatten the tongue as it pushes past the lips.

▪ Extend tongue as far as possible without losing control of the gum.

▪ Use tongue to keep the bubble from closing while taking a breath.

▪ Breathe in carefully through the nose for additional breaths.

▪ As the bubble gets bigger blow carefully to avoid popping the thinning gum.

Really large bubbles require a really large wad of gum. Chewing the sugar out of all that gum would melt your teeth and dislocate your jaw. To avoid that the concept of gum washing was invented.

Items Needed

▪ Microwavable mug meant for hot beverages

▪ Microwave

▪ Sink with warm running water

▪ Clean hands

▪ Unwrap several pieces of bubble gum and put them in the mug.

▪ Fill the mug with water and microwave it until the water is very warm but not too hot to touch. Do not over heat!

▪ Drain the water from the mug being careful not to let the gum fall out.

▪ Carefully pick up the gum from the cup and try squishing all the pieces together into a ball.

▪ Repeat steps 2, 3, and 4 as needed until the gum can be easily stretched and kneaded with your fingers.

▪ Rinse the gum in the sink under warm running water. Do not let it touch the sink.

▪ While rinsing, stretch and knead the gum. When the gum has a smooth look and feel and stretches well without breaking, it is ready.

▪ It could take several minutes of rinsing before the gum is ready.

Alternative to the mug and microwave approach.

1. Briefly chew a couple pieces of gum until they are soft.

2. Place the chewed pieces on a gum wrapper and start chewing the next couple pieces.

3. Repeat steps 1 & 2 until the desired number of pieces are chewed.

4. Squish all the chewed gum pieces together.

5. Rinse the gum in the sink under warm running water. Do not let it touch the sink.

6. While rinsing, stretch and knead the gum. When the gum has a smooth look and feel and stretches well without breaking, it is ready.

7. It could take several minutes of rinsing before the gum is ready.

▪ If you find yourself in a situation where you want to use several pieces of gum for bubble blowing and washing the gum isn’t an option, try Incrementing.

▪ Chew two pieces of bubble gum until the sugar is gone.

▪ Add two more pieces and chew until the sugar is gone again.

▪ Repeat steps 1 & 2, adding pieces in increments of two, until the desired number of pieces have been chewed.

▪ Keep in mind…

▪ Incrementing is not as fast as Gum Washing. It may take the better part of an hour to get ramped up.

▪ You are consuming all the sugar instead of washing it down the drain.

Getting accustomed to chewing a lot of gum at once can be a challenge. One technique that can help is called Padding. The easiest way to explain Padding is with an example.

Let’s say Bob is trying to get comfortable chewing and blowing bubbles with 10 pieces of gum. When Bob washes the gum he throws in 13 pieces. Once it’s washed Bob chews all 13 pieces for a few minutes and tries to blow a couple bubbles. Then he takes the gum out of his mouth, tears off a 1/4 of it and sets that aside. Bob puts the rest of gum, which is now roughly 10 pieces, back in his mouth and it feels much easier to chew and blow bubbles.

Adding and then removing that extra gum makes it feel easier to use the remaining gum even if it’s more than usual.

▪ Here are a few more tips for the advanced bubble blower.

▪ Keep an old hand towel ready for wiping gum off face and hands.

▪ If your jaw needs a brief break, flatten the gum against the roof of your mouth and leave it there for a few minutes.

▪ Sometimes a large bubble gets a big hole and it stops growing but doesn’t pop right away. When this happens…

▪ Carefully grab and remove the bubble from the corner of your mouth with one hand.

▪ Once you are holding the bubble at a safe distance, grab the other corner with the other hand.

▪ Carefully stretch the gum horizontally. This will safely rip the bubble apart and prevent it from popping all over you.

▪ Put the two corners back together and carefully twirl the long strand of gum at a slight angle until it has wound up small enough you can easily put it all back in your mouth.

▪ Bravado – A way to show off when holding a large bubble by one corner, whip the bubble downward like you are cracking a whip. The bubble will make an impressive pop and can send little shards of gum flying. Be careful not to make a mess!

▪ Bubble gum was invented by Walter Diemer, an employee of the Fleer Corporation, in 1928.

▪ Bubble gum is pink because that was the only food coloring available when Diemer made his first successful 300 pound batch of bubble gum.

▪ Bubble gum was first sold at a mom & pop candy store in Philadelphia, December 26th, 1928.

▪ The bubble gum Diemer invented was branded and sold under the name “Dubble Bubble”.

▪ Dubble Bubble is still sold today but the recipe has changed over the years.

▪ Shortly after Dubble Bubble was invented the recipe was leaked or stolen and other companies started making their own bubble gum.

▪ Bubble gum quickly became the world’s best selling penny candy.

▪ Before WWII, close to $4.5 million dollars worth of bubble gum was sold per year.

▪ During WWII there was a shortage of bubble gum but soldiers still carried it around the world, increasing it’s popularity.

▪ After WWII there was a bubble gum boom but it wasn’t enough to keep up with demand. Kids waited in long lines at candy shops. A black market for bubble gum emerged and the penny candy sold for up to $1 a piece.

▪ Bubble gum contests became popular and they competed in a variety of ways.

▪ Biggest, smallest, loudest pop, messiest, cutest, most glamourous, most perfectly round

Bubble gum history from “The Great American Chewing Gum Book” by Robert Hendrickson.

▪ Biggest Bubble Contest

▪ Whoever blows the biggest bubble wins!

▪ Bubble Gum Chewing Contest

▪ Whoever chews the most bubble gum wins!

▪ Bubble Gum Q&A

▪ Player is asked questions and chews a piece of gum for each wrong answer.

▪ This games is often used to test a future bride’s knowledge of her fiancé.

▪ Chubby Bubble

▪ Players must blow a bubble of a certain size before adding the next piece of gum.

▪ Whoever chews the most pieces and can still blow a bubble wins!

▪ Bubble Speed

▪ Whoever blows the most bubbles in a certain amount of time wins!

▪ Bubble Inception

▪ Whoever can blow the most bubbles in a bubble wins!

▪ Bubble Gum Card Games

▪ Screw Up Your Neighbor

▪ The loser each round chews another piece of gum.

▪ Baloney (BS)

▪ Players caught in a lie chew another piece of gum.

▪ GUMS

▪ A bubble gum revision of the Guts card game.

Play one of the bubble gum

games for about 20-30

minutes. Have Fun!

Like all games, bubble gum

games are about having fun. If

you don’t like the game you

chose, try a different one!

If you can, play the game with

a partner. Be competitive!

Take a picture of the winner to

commemorate your victory!

Some amazing bubbles can

happen during bubble gum

games. Get them on video!

CONGRATULATIONS!

▪ You have completed the Bubble Gum course! Congratulations! You are now a Master bubble blower! Keep practicing, experimenting and having fun!

▪ Please send your questions, course feedback, and bubble gum tips to bubblegumprof@outlook.com. If you blew any bubbles you are particularly proud of during the course, please send pictures or video of those too!