How To Make New Candles From Old Crayons

I was having a bit of a "clean-up" today ... you know the one that you always have a day or two before Christmas in anticipation of the onslaught of the "in-laws" and other relatives when it is your turn to host the Christmas Day Luncheon.

Rummaging through the linen press, come pantry, come general dogs-body storage for those things that don't actually have a home to call their own I came across a box of broken stubs of crayons that from the look of them had well and truly seen better days over the years.

Chances are that if you have children in your home, you too will no doubt have an abundance of worn down neglected crayons that have long past their use-by date and don’t get used much anymore.

After my moment of reminiscing all the fabulous times that we (yes me included) have had using them the resourceful-part of me (aptly named Resourceful Rosee) decided that I could put these old crayons to good use once more ... you could say give them a new lease on life!

So do as I did and instead of throwing them out and buying new ones, consider re-using them to make candles.

Most children will love the idea of spending some quality crafting time creating candles with you and I am sure that they would get a buzz knowing that their old crayons helped to create new candles.

Making new candles out of old crayons is not only very resourceful but it can also be a great gift giving idea ... very handy with Christmas just a few days away and especially useful should you forget someone on your list or an unexpected visitor decides to drop by.

Let the fun begin -

Before you get started into the frenzy of candle making, I recommend that you discuss safety procedures with your children.

As the crayons will have to be melted at a very high heat, it is advisable that this is carried out by the adult or under adult-supervision if your children are teenagers.

This is one part of candle making that is not suitable for younger children to participate in so assure the younger children that there are many other aspects of the candle making that they can be a part of.

Before we start melting down the old crayons you will need to gather your supplies.

In addition to the crayons, you will need either an old muffin-tray or wax carton (ie. milk, fabric softener, or orange juice) depending on the type/style of candle that you want to make.

If you choose to make a pillar or block style candle you will also need paraffin wax, two full ice cube trays, a double boiler, and white packing string.

If you don’t want to use your double boiler an old coffee can and a saucepan will work just as well.

Trim the top off of the wax carton, leaving it approximately six inches high. You will want to cut the string at least 8 inches long as this is going to be the wick. You will later cut the wick to fit the holder.

To ensure a wick that burns easier take three pieces of string and braid them together. Use smaller pieces of string to tie the ends together.

The holders for your candles can be anything you desire as long as they are non-flammable.

Melt about 1300 grams of paraffin wax in the double boiler or coffee can. Cut the wax it into small chunks to help it melt faster. The melting process will take about fifteen to twenty minutes.

While the wax is melting, peel the papers off of the old crayons.

You will have to decide if you are going to separate the colours and melt-n-pour them individually or mix them all in together and have a surprise as to what the end colour will be.

For best results, only add the crayons to the wax after it has completely melted. After the crayons and wax have both melted together, immediately remove the mixture from the stove and pour into yourcandle holders.

If you would like to make scented candles try adding a splash of cinnamon or vanilla essential oils into your hot wax mixture.

It is very important that the candles be left alone to completely harden before anyone touches them.

Make sure that you have an area where this can be done without disruption remembering to keep them out of the younger children's reach, as out of curiosity they may want to check on their candles and end up getting hurt and/or burnt as the wax will stay hot for several hours.

To make muffin-tray candles (as in the photographs to the right) you just need to put the old crayons into the muffin tin (again decide if you just want a singular colour or a mixture of colours).

Place the muffin-tray into a very hot oven and leave in the oven until the crayons have melted.

Once melted remove the muffin-tray from the oven and leave in a safe place to cool-off.

If you are going to use them as "candle melts" that you put on the top of a tea-light burner then you will not need to add a small wick.

Only add a small wick if you intend to burn the candle in its own holder.

The muffin-tray method of candle making is far easier than the other methods and will not take a lot of time to do either.

If you chose not to use them as a candle they can always be used as a "new crayon" as you would have given it a "second chance" to be useful all over again, only this time they could draw multi-coloured streaks on the page.

Making candles out of old crayons is a fabulous way to spend the afternoon creating new from old craft projects with your children.

What a wonderful way to teach them the benefits of reusing one product by making it into another ... and a useful, practical one at that!

Click on the highlighted link below to check out UrsulaRose's blog ... you just might learn something new about Resourceful Living.

Resourceful Rosee by Homeworker Rose/Resourceful Rosee 2010

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