Recycled Crayon Valentines

I am always on the lookout for cute, easy and inexpensive gifts the boys can give to their little friends.  This year, my four year old is bringing these adorable heart-shaped crayon Valentines to his Preschool pals.

Want to make some?  Dig out your old broken crayons, and follow these simple instructions.

Step 1 - Soak the crayons in water, and put the kids to work peeling the paper off the crayons.

Step 2 - Break up the crayons and put them in a heart-shaped muffin tin.  I found this silicon one at the dollar store.  (Don't forget to put the flimsy silicon muffin tin on a proper cookie sheet before you pop it into the oven.)

Step 3 - Melt the crayons in the oven.  (I set my oven to 300 degrees, and it took about 10 minutes for all the crayon bits to turn to liquid.) 

Step 4 - Carefully remove the tray from the oven, and let the crayons cool completely.  (I put mine outside to speed up the cooling process.)

Once you "pop" the crayons out of the tin, they are ready to give out.  I attached ours to cards (which I printed on my computer) that read, "I ♥ having a friend like YOU!", but you can package them any way you like.

Much better than a bin of broken crayons, don't you think? 

♥ 

Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

**Originally posted at Greenmommy.ca on January 20, 2012.