Crayons are an arts and crafts supply staple for creative souls of all ages. With use, crayons inevitably end up as tiny nubs or break into jagged bits that can make coloring with them tricky.
If you love to be frugal and stretch your supplies or just hate to see things get wasted as I do, you have probably accumulated a collection full of all the little crayon bits, and shavings, in a container somewhere waiting for their opportunity to be useful again. If that is the case, pull it out, and let’s give those crayon bits another chance to make some art.
Making Recycled Crayons:
- Preheat the oven to 250°F (121°C)
- Gather any broken or whole crayons for recycling and remove any labels.
- Break any large pieces into smaller pieces. The smaller the pieces, the faster they will finish melting.
- Place reusable muffin liners into the muffin pan, or the silicone mold(s) onto the cookie sheet to prevent wax drips during the melting process or while it is being removed from the oven to cool.
- Arrange crayon pieces into the silicone molds or muffin tin wells. You can make each new crayon one color or add a couple of colors to each to create a marbled effect or many colors (such as crayon shavings) for a fun rainbow franken-crayon.
- Bake at 250°F/121°C for 15 to 20 minutes or until all the crayon pieces are completely melted.
- Carefully remove the tray from the oven. Allow the wax to cool either at room temperature or if you are in a hurry, pop them in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Once crayons have solidified, remove them from the silicone mold or muffin tin.
- They will be ready for use immediately. Happy coloring!
Note: If you would like to make these without using any power, you can also leave the wax-filled molds outside, in direct sunlight, and let them melt naturally. Once all the pieces have melted, carefully bring the molds indoors to cool, or allow them to cool outside in the shade or leave them overnight. It will take quite a bit more time, but the result will be the same.
*You can also use a muffin tin with no liner if no candy molds are available. To prevent the finished crayons from breaking upon removal, spray the muffin pan with cooking spray before melting.
With all the different silicone mold shapes to choose from, the newly made crayons can come in all shapes and sizes. These recycled crayons make great additions to zero-waste birthday party favor bags, and candy-free valentines with mini coloring books or can be a fun way to help declutter a classroom or day care’s art supplies.
If you don’t have any silicone candy molds on hand for this project and would prefer to shop as low waste as possible keep an eye out at your local thrift store, buy nothing group, or online used marketplace. They are usually listed as molds for candy, chocolate, or wax melts. Silicone ice cube trays will work too as long as they don’t contain plastic that would melt in the oven.
We are always happy to hear from our readers! If you have made these recycled crayons, leave us a comment to share what shape you chose, and how the newly melted crayons were to be used. Do you have any tips, tricks, or suggestions to make these even better? Let us know below. Happy creating!
