A few weeks back, while shopping at Joanns, I found some jumbo straws on clearance and decided I'd gather up all the broken crayons at my daughters to sort and remelt into new crayons for the grand kids. There are many tutorials with many varieties of ways to melt down crayons on Pinterest. I just chose to go this route once I found the right straws that make a larger multi-colored crayon.
It took over two hours on a Saturday afternoon just to sort and tear off crayon paper...a good way to spend a cloudy, rainy day. I think I had about twenty bags of crayons. Once sorted, use a tin or metal container to melt your colors into. I used tuna cans for mine. Also, it will be messy no matter how hard you try not to make a mess...it will happen so line your crock pot with aluminum foil unless you have a crock that is just for crafting and don't care what happens to it. Mine is for food and I didn't want any wax in a container used for food.
I turned my small crockpot on high and covered it with a lid till it melted the crayons down. It didn't take long to melt, pour and load another batch. Of course, the more tins you have and the larger your crock...the quicker it will all go.
Gather your straws, cover the bottom of each one with masking tape or foil and wrap them with a large twist tie or rubber band so they stand up for pouring wax into each one. I kept color families together and randomly poured into the straws till they filled up. It took them overnight to harden and most of them popped/pushed out, but some just broke and wouldn't come out whole. The grands love them and they are great for little hands!
It took over two hours on a Saturday afternoon just to sort and tear off crayon paper...a good way to spend a cloudy, rainy day. I think I had about twenty bags of crayons. Once sorted, use a tin or metal container to melt your colors into. I used tuna cans for mine. Also, it will be messy no matter how hard you try not to make a mess...it will happen so line your crock pot with aluminum foil unless you have a crock that is just for crafting and don't care what happens to it. Mine is for food and I didn't want any wax in a container used for food.
I turned my small crockpot on high and covered it with a lid till it melted the crayons down. It didn't take long to melt, pour and load another batch. Of course, the more tins you have and the larger your crock...the quicker it will all go.
