Zubbles, our long-ago prophesied soap bubbles with magically vanishing color have finally hit the market—and they’re awesome
Posted 06.25.2009 at 2:59 pm
12 Comments
Zubbles: John Mahoney
In 2005 I wrote a profile of an old friend, Tim Kehoe, a toy inventor who’d spent 10 years trying to solve what should be an easy problem: How do you make colored soap bubbles that don’t stain whatever they break on? If you’re thinking, “Oh that’s easy, just do X,” you’re wrong. Tim tried X. Didn’t work. In fact, it blew up the kitchen and permanently colored the dog.
But as of today, you can buy his colored bubbles, called Zubbles, at zubbles.com and through his iPhone app. And even if you’re not a bubble man, these things will blow your mind. Thanks to some seriously novel chemistry, the stain they appear to leave when they break vanishes in seconds. If only he could make pizza sauce do the same thing.
Zubbles On My White Linen Shirt: It was clean 15 minutes later, after the dyes had fully evaporated John Mahoney
Here's a video of Mahoney and I blowing colored bubbles in the office. Read Tim’s account for the last four years of trying to bring his life’s work to market on the next page.
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I too have been waiting for years for the bubbles to finally make it to market. Congratulations Tim, and thanks for keeping at it!
-Dan
Awesome. Next wedding I go to I am going to pass these bubbles out to all the kids and then watch as the bride and parents freak out when they think they have a stain in that $1500 wedding dress and rental tux.
http://prosportnutrition.net/?a=633808700294218750
Well, I think that we have just witnessed a remarkable milestone in the history of the United States. I feel so content.
-Drew
This rocks. I remember stuff like this in the 90's. It was supposed to disappear, but lots of times it didn't. I never tried them, but I heard horror stories.
http://www.linkedin.com/in/suzyjenkins
awsome i want some
so wy that coloer ?
that is really cool,only if they had those when i was a child.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHTQMWLn2m0
Way to go Tim!
Congrats on your invention, I can't wait to blow a color bubble myself and I am 51!
My 12-year old son will certainly love it, but may be mom won't like the stain until it goes out. But I have that planned out, I'll tell her I'll do some "magic" and in a few minutes the stain is gone! If I survive those minutes then I will be her hero!
Thank you, thank you, and good luck!
--Ernst B
www.LinkedIn.com/in/ernstbreternitz
finally you can blow bubbles indoors!
I was just thinking about this again a couple of weeks ago! Great work Tim! Way to get through it
WOW! this is most definitely something i'll buy.
the days of clear bubbles will be GONE!
Soapy invisable ink. Did you drink some yet? Wonder what will happen if the bubble breaks in your childs eye? Are the Glow in the dark and Black light ones next?