Crayons for Jewel

Today I decided it was time to use all our broken crayons lying around and make some tot-sized ones for little sister to use. Jewel turned one in January and is starting to pay more attention to what her big brothers are doing so I though this would be a good time to make her some crayons if she wants to join them in colouring.

First we sorted the crayons and picked out all the broken ones, which we peeled the paper off of and then broke into smaller pieces. Not Ms. Jewel of course, she was having a nap but the other two were great at peeling paper and breaking crayons!

My handsome helpers!

Then we put the pieces in the mould. We made sure to make one of each colour but then made a few more mixing up all the colours.

I had bought a silicon mould at Target for this exact purpose. You could use a regular muffin tin I suppose but I'm thinking you might have a hard time getting the finished crayons out. Plus the silicon ones have such fun shapes!

flower crayons!

Then I popped my tray into the oven at 350°F for 10 minutes and the boys watched while the crayons slowly melted down.

Once we took them out I let them cool for about 20 minutes on the counter at which point I thought they were cool enough to remove... nope! The first one I took out left behind a chunk in the mould so I put the tray in the fridge for another 20 minutes and after that the rest popped out just fine.

 

Then it was time for little sister to try them out! At first she wasn't sure what to do, she pulled them all out and looked at each one but once she watched us colour a few scribbles on the page she was all game to do it herself :)

Just a note: the smaller you break the pieces, the more you will be able to fill the moulds. The first time we only filled them to the top and when they melted down the individual moulds were only about half way full of wax. The second time I cut the pieces smaller with a knife and filled the moulds so they were much fuller.

This made the crayons quite a bit thicker, which is good if you are thinking someone might try to put them in their mouth.  Thicker = harder to bite a piece off!

Another tip, put your silicon tray on a regular baking tray. Those silicon trays are bendy, which is helpful for getting the finished crayons out, but you do not want it to bend and drip when you are removing them from the oven!

 And finally, here's a tidbit of sweetness before you go...

The boys fight every evening about who gets to set the table, because whomever sets the table gets to sit in the seat beside Jewel's highchair. #brotherlove #soawesome #brothersfightabouteverything


Have a great weekend!