Saturday, August 28, 2010
Crayons, Crayons, Crayons OH MY!
So as per my last post I traipsed on down to Wal-Mart and bought myself 60 boxes of crayons for a mere 12 bucks, picked up some scented oil and came home to bask in the glory that is "making scented and textured crayons".
What you will need:
CRAYONS (at least 4 boxes if you want "exact" colors) NOTE:Cra-Z-Art crayons work better than Crayola. Crayola is already scented and do not take the scent well resulting in the need for MORE oil which could ruin your crayons.
Mini Muffin Tin
Scented Oil , any scent
optional textured mold (you can mold them in the pan)
Hot off the stove water (for cleaning)
Small medicine or oil dropper (one small enough to fit in the oil container)
Medicine Syringe or Large Dropper
Piece of a plain wire hanger long enough to stir but for the end to keep cool enough to handle.
Steps:
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Peel off Crayon wrappers & break crayons into small pieces placing them into individual muffin cups by color. 
3. Add 8 drops of Scented Oil of choice to each crayon filled cup using the small dropper, rinse as needed but be sure to DRY the dropper to prevent too much liquid.
4. Place pan in oven watching carefully because the crayons will be melted in minutes then remove from oven. NOTE: If you leave them too long they will smoke up your house.
5. Stir each tin with the metal clothes hanger. NOTE: I wouldn't suggest utensils as they are thick, COLD and could potentially set your crayons in the pan too quickly.
6. Using the large syringe/dropper (if you chose a mold)remove the liquid crayon from the pan and eject into each mold starting from light colors to dark colors. You have to do this quickly so it is best not to clean the syringe every time. If it gets too gunky rinse quickly in the hot water.
7. Once the liquid crayon is in the mold tap the molds lightly and put aside or place in freezer until frozen. Should you chose freezer take care not to leave them too long as they set quickly and could break. 
8. When set run the BOTTOM of the mold under hot faucet water until they release then tap them out of the pan onto a paper towel.
9. Once out of the pan the bottom of the crayons might be a little rough. You can either use the bottom and color away , sand off the access with a butter knife or run them along the bottom of a warm pan for a second. 
My Experience:
This was such a fun and exciting project to do, especially knowing what a difference it was going to make to my daughter. Initially I used 2 different types of crayons because I wanted to see which ones worked best. I used classic "crayola" and a brand called "Cra-Z-Art" which I had never used before. I found once cooled that the Crayola brand crayons still smelled a lot like the crayola scent instead of the scent I used (which was cinnamon and Tropical fruit both really strong) but the scentless Cra-Z-Art smelled like a dream and scented perfectly! I was so happy in the end I used our old crayola crayons and took the chance purchasing the 60 boxes of Cra-Z-Art crayons. I even looked up crazy art online and the reviews were EXCELLENT! It seems many are in agreement that the quality of these inexpensive crayons is very very good.
As far as the color, I actually PREFER the Cra-Z-Art to the crayola.
1. They melted better.
2. The color is actually dead on with Crayola if not BETTER than Crayola.
3. You don't get that "crayon" smell which I actually like but when it comes to this project it is a serious thumbs down.
4. On paper you can actually feel the Cra-Z-Art crayons and for a blind person that is a HUGE plus. I know sighted people prefer it to be smooth but in my world smooth is BORING.
CRAYOLA VS. CRA-Z-ART
When I chose my colors I went ahead and used "like colors" with all of my crayons. For instance I used 4 of the different typed of reds, 4 different blues, 4 different purples, etc. The color might not be that fabulous solid red but it is close enough. My daughter is blind and she is not going to exactly notice the difference. Doing this in the end I will be left with extra crayons which means once I use all the crayons up I can make fun mix/max colors for my sighted children.
I was also very lucky to have found these crayons during back to school for only .20 cents a box. If the cost is an issue during regular season you can easily have a crayon drive around town using craigslist, bulletin boards or the community section of the news paper. You would be amazed at how many people would be willing to get rid of old broken crayons, especially for a good cause like helping a blind or disabled child. And lets not forget that old saying "Waste Not, Want Not", I think that still applies to crayons?
At first I wasn't really sure what would be the best way to go. I didn't want to come online and order the special molds that my daughter would love until I knew molding them would work. I know it is possible because I have seen molded crayons but I am at home and do not have anything "special" to use. I just used basic things around the house like a Popsicle mold, a muffin tin and one of my husband tungsten rods to stir, (he is a welder) which to you is the clothes hanger. And of course having a disabled child who is on a lot of medications med droppers are readily available to me. If you do not have one you can find them in the pharmacy for next to nothing, some pharmacists will give them to you free of charge if you ask. I bought nothing but the crayons and oils which cost me a total of 15.00 for 60 boxes of crayons (24 Packs)& 2 scented oils which in the end will be a HUGE difference from the prices of already scented crayons. By the time I ordered two boxes of crayons with shipping I would have spent almost 20 bucks, making them myself I have enough crayons for at least 30 packs if I play my cards right. Even at regular prices of about .75 cents - $1.00 a box you will see a significant savings. If you count that I wanted textured as well, wow, I would be broke before I could blink because crayons are not exactly "durable and long lasting".
I am so happy with how my crayons turned out. And hey I am not even going to waste the crayola set , I am sure my 3 year old is going to be throwing a fit for her sisters "special" crayons. When that happens I will break out with the "not really scented" Crayola's. They smell enough that she won't care but the smell difference for Miriam is HUGE.
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Thanks for sharing this awesome craft - my children have been dying to melt our leftover crayons - and adding scent would be huge for my sensory integration son. He hates to color because the smell hurts his head. I never even thought about making scented crayons for him.
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Thank You for sharing! I can't wait to try this with my daughter. I'm going to add your button to my blog roll later on this evening.
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