I learned something about parenthood.
At age 4, Valentines are recommended. By age 5, Valentines are expected.
School sends home a list of all the kids names, just in case you want to make sure everyone gets one and so you can personalize them.
I, being the holidays-dont-mean-candy mom, wanted to do something crafty that the whole family could get involved with. I turned to Pinterest and found these cool heart crayons that you make from old worn crayons. It turned out to be great fun and kept Taj interested the whole time.
Sorting the Crayons
We set up an assembly line. Dad razor bladed a line down the crayon wrappers, Taj unwrapped them and I chopped them.
We sorted by color and kept the brown and really dark ones aside. I highly recommend a meat cleaver for this task and much to Taj’s dismay, I told him this was my job.
Making the hearts
Using a silicone heart tray (that you will not be able to use for food post-crayon-heart-making), we made heart filled color themes. I told Taj no more than 2-3 colors per heart which kept them simple enough.
Bake at 200 degrees until they melt (about 30 minutes) and voila. Crayon heart!
Card Design
The next step was to pick a card design. I bought foam hearts, but instead we used crafty Valentines Day paper that I found onsale at Meijers.
To adhere the cards, we did a little trial and error. The goal was to have the hearts stick to the card, but still be able to be pulled off and used.
It turns out a glue from the glue gun doesn’t adhere to waxy crayons.
Then we tried to drip candle wax, but that was messy.
Turns out double sided tape is the perfect solution.
Ok, assembly line works well here again.
- Taj picks the card per student
- I write their name and the Valentine’s Day note
- Taj writes “Love, Taj”
- Dad sticks on hearts (and keeps Taj moving fast enough to make it to bedtime before midnight)
Fun Things to Write Inside Your Heart Crayon Valentine’s Day Cards
- Happy Valentines Day for “Crayon” Out Loud
- Color Your Heart Out
- You Color My World
- Have a Colorful Day
- Wishing You a Colorful Valentine’s Day
- You Make My Heart Melt
Ta-Da! Recycled Crayon Hearts Valentine’s Day Cards
