Wow. It's the 21st of Feb already. I do apologize for lack of posts. One of my weaknesses is time management. Maybe that'll be next week's post!

So ... on to the second half of the up-cycled crayons.

Supplies:
old crayons (we get ours from friends and teachers)
old pot (rummage sale!)
soup cans
old towels or pot holders (rummage sale!)
hard candy molds (or muffin tin with or without paper liners)
    -i tried the molds at the local craft shop and the melted wax is too hot for these. The wax doesn't melt a hole in the bottom but it distorts the shape of the mold a bit so make sure the mold you buy says hard candy mold or high heat mold.

Here are a few of my supplies. The bottle on the left is agave, not brandy!!

What To Do:

1. Peel the paper off of the crayons. This can be left to the little fingers or what I did was slice down the paper with an xacto knife. Not as easy as it sounds, but quicker. PLEASE don't slice thru your fingers. Trust me it hurts.

2. When we peel the paper off, we separate the colors at this point. I have lots of old containers I store them in but they do melt quicker if they're in smaller pieces. If you have a little tyke that wants to help, here's where they can be a big helper. Put the crayons in a paper bag or zip lock bag. Grab a hammer. Head outside & let your little one smash the crayons as much as they want! This teaches them more than you can imagine.

3. Now your turn! Take the soup can and pinch one side to make a spout. Sorry I didn't get a picture of how to do this but you can figure it out from the one below. This step isn't necessary but trust me: it'll make your life easier!

4. Pick your colors that you want to pour for your first molds & dump each color into a separate can.

5. Put as many of the containers that will fit into your old pot as possible. Fill the pot with water until it reaches about 1/4 up the bottom of the soup cans. Poof: instant double boiler! Be careful not to spill water into the soup cans. It won't hurt the melting crayons but wax & water don't mix.

6. Turn on the burner & wait. Uh. I hate waiting.....!

7. When the crayons are all melted (ok not all of them will probably melt but a majority) take your old pot holders & gently pour some of the melted crayon color into the mold. I use a second old rag to wipe the water off the bottom of the can so it doesn't dribble in the mold. If you want to mix colors, leave room for a second or third color.

8. Let dry & pop out! These make awesome valentines gifts, easter egg suprises, halloween treats or just because presents for the little neighbors!

Remember the wax is hot so pouring the wax should be left up to the adult. But you can include them in most of the other steps. Have fun!

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*quick tip* don't bother melting the fancy crayons like the ones with glitter or washable crayons. They don't melt very well & just end up making more of a mess.

*quick tip* if you dribble water in the mold, it creates an air bubble in the crayon.

*quick tip* I highly recommend investing in a pampered chef can opener. It cuts a smooth edge on the can so you don't cut your fingers.

*quick tip* when pouring the wax, I recommend grabbing the can by the top of the lip & not around the base. The base will be moist from the steam & somewhat slippery.

Repurposing

Re-purposing. Recycling. Reusing.

I'm a thrifter. I buy from them and sell at them. I probably save too much but I'm not a hoarder. Trust me. I watch those hoarding shows. I'm not that! I use my old socks with holes in them as dusting rags. I reuse my dryer sheets a few times to get the most use out of them. I reuse glass jars to store fabric swatches, buttons or paperclips.

Heck I've even gotten my son into the swing of things! He hates it when I put old pieces of paper in the recycle bin.  "Mom, you can use that corner to write notes on. Don't throw that out!" 

Yup. That's my boy!!

He even has his own line of recycled products. Like me, he loves to craft so I'm always looking for boy crafts. Harder than it sounds!  So instead of making little trinkets, I teach him how to take old things and make them into something new and cool!  RE-PURPOSING!

Plus, any money he makes at our craft shows, he puts half in savings & he gets to spend the other half. I'm encouraging charity giving and will discuss that next time.

Our first project we did was to make new crayons out of old ones.

And this is where i pause the posting.....


Yup. I'm accident prone. I truly believe it runs in the family. Right mom?! Well, about 2 weeks ago, I took a digger head first into the snow-slash-frozen ground ..... while sledding ...... and tore the ligaments & muscles in my neck.  Can you touch your chin to your chest? Ok now bend down so your chin is almost between your boobs. Now touch your chin to your chest. Ouch.

I'll admit. I'm not in the best shape of my life. I just started running/walking to loose some extra 'baggage' and I have Jillian Michaels 'torture' dvd's I was going to start doing again to stretch & grow my muscles. Is that called ironic? Or just murphy's law.....


It's a slow healing process. I've torn ligaments in my ankle & was in a walking cast for 6 weeks. No cast for the neck. I'm finally back to work full-time but today I'm very sore. Left work early & haven't moved from the couch but only to let the dog out & feed her. She doesn't understand.

This is how I felt today

So back to my *pause*. I'll take pics tonight as I can & tomorrow and finish the post on how to make recycled crayons .... AND fire starters!

But for now, count your blessings, be thankful for your health and Happy Blessings!