Happy Earth Day!

Here’s a great way to reuse and upcycle something that would normally be trash! I used broken pieces of Ava and Stella’s crayons and melted them in a silicone tray.

We tried flower shapes first then we made alphabet letters to spell out words and our names.

Not only is this Earth Day inspired craft easy to make but the colorful crayon shapes turn out so pretty and unique. They make fun gifts or party favors too.

With the cool spring weather and sunny days, this was the perfect weekend craft for us to do as a family on the patio!

What you need:

50 or more broken and old crayons in a variety of colors

alphabet letter silicone mold (order via Amazon here)

bowl of warm water, optional

Directions:

1. Start by sorting through your containers of old and broken crayons. We counted out about 50 to fill one full alphabet mold. 

2. Now remove the paper wrappers from all the crayons. We like to soak ours in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes so they come off easier. 

3. Once all the paper is removed make sure to completely dry off the crayons. 

4. Now add to the molds, breaking into smaller pieces and combining multiple colors for each letter. 

5. Fill each letter completely will crayon pieces.

6. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees.

7. Add the filled mold to a parchment paper lined baking sheet and place in the oven.

8. Bake for 15 minutes until crayons are  fully melted and molds are filled.

9. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before removing (or they will crack). We waited at least 30 minutes. 

10. Carefully pop out and remove the letters from the mold onto a lined tray.

11. Repeat with remaining crayons if you want additional letters to spell certain names and words.

We did extra vowels and “L”, “D”, and “M” so we had enough to spell Mom, Dad, and the girls’ names. 

12. Now you can spell names and wrap up as gifts or simply upcycle and reuse for your own at home coloring projects!

Stella started by gathering her broken and old crayons. We separated about 50 to start. 

Make sure you gather a variety of bright colors.

Now remove the paper wrappers from all the crayons.

We like to soak ours in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes so they come off easier. 

Once all the paper is removed make sure to completely dry off the crayons. 

I ordered this silicone alphabet mold off Amazon. It works perfectly and I love the style and size of the letters.

Here is my Amazon link if you would like to order one: https://amzn.to/3xYwkgc .

Now add to the molds, breaking into smaller pieces and combining multiple colors for each letter. 

Fill each letter completely will crayon pieces.

Add the filled mold to a parchment paper lined baking sheet and place in the oven.

Bake at 250 degrees for 15 minutes until crayons are fully melted and molds are filled.

Remove carefully from the oven and let cool completely ( about 30 minutes).

You can also place in the fridge to speed up cooling.

Carefully pop out and remove the letters from the mold onto a lined tray.

Look how colorful and pretty they turned out!

Repeat with remaining crayons if you want additional letters to spell certain names and words.

We did extra vowels and “L”, “D”, and “M” so we had enough to spell Mom, Dad, and the girls’ names. 

Now you can spell names and wrap up as gifts or simply upcycle and reuse for your own at home coloring projects!

I have also made these crayons in flower and heart shapes.

These were smaller and worked well for my toddler at the time. The molds are from IKEA.

Happy Earth Day!

“May we all be inspired by the beauty of our planet and take action to ensure a healthy future for generations to come.” – unknown

The post DIY Melted Name Crayons | Earth Day Upcycle Craft appeared first on For the Love of Food.

These adorable recycled Wine Cork Apples are an easy to make at home painted craft.

Display as home decor or they make thoughtful gifts for teachers and friends this school year!

What you need: 

•  Recycled Wine Corks
• Red Acrylic Craft Paint
• Green Assorted Felt and Fabric Scraps 
• Assorted Ribbons
•  Twigs
• Glue Gun and Glue Sticks
• Scissors or Pinking Shears
• Paintbrush
• Wire Cutters

Directions: 

1. Begin with the smallest apple. Attach two corks, three corks and two corks with a glue gun.
2. Glue the corks together in rows. Stack and secure two corks on the bottom, three corks in the middle, and two corks on the top with a glue gun.
3. For the medium apple, attach two corks, three corks, three corks and two corks with a glue gun.
4. Glue the corks together in rows. Stack and secure two corks on the bottom, three corks on the second row, three corks on the third row, and two corks on the top.
5. For the largest apple, attach three corks, four corks, five corks, four corks, and three corks with a glue gun.
6. Glue the corks together in rows. Stack and secure three corks on the bottom, four corks on the second row, five corks on the third row, four corks on the fourth row, and three corks on the top row.
7. Place red craft paint on a paper plate. Paint the ends of each cork apple with red paint using a paintbrush.
8. Gather a tree branch from the yard (or a few twigs). Cut one-inch to two-inch sections with a pair of wire cutters.
9. Attach a stem to the top center of each cork apple with a glue gun.
10. Cut out leaf shapes with scissors or pinking shears from different shades of green felt or fabric.
11. Apply a dot of glue at the tip of each leaf and fold in half. This creates dimension.
12. Attach to the side of the apple stem with a glue gun.
13. Finally, cut small piece of ribbon and tie in three bows. Glue onto the front of each apple stem.
14. Now your apples are done and ready to display.

Note: If using liquid craft glue hold corks together with a rubber band during the drying process.

First, gather all your supplies.

This craft is a great Earth Day craft too since you are using recycled wine corks, fabric scraps, and twigs from the yard.

Begin with the smallest apple. Attach two corks, three corks and two corks with a glue gun.

Glue the corks together in rows. Stack and secure two corks on the bottom, three corks in the middle, and two corks on the top with a glue gun.

For the medium apple, attach two corks, three corks, three corks and two corks with a glue gun.

Glue the corks together in rows. Stack and secure two corks on the bottom, three corks on the second row, three corks on the third row, and two corks on the top.

For the largest apple, attach three corks, four corks, five corks, four corks, and three corks with a glue gun.

Glue the corks together in rows. Stack and secure three corks on the bottom, four corks on the second row, five corks on the third row, four corks on the fourth row, and three corks on the top row.

Now you have all three apples ready to go. 

Note: If using liquid craft glue hold corks together with a rubber band during the drying process.

Place red craft paint on a paper plate. Paint the ends of each cork apple with red paint using a paintbrush.

Gather a tree branch from the yard (or a few twigs). Cut one-inch to two-inch sections with a pair of wire cutters.

Attach a stem to the top center of each cork apple with a glue gun.

Cut out leaf shapes with scissors or pinking shears from different shades of green felt or fabric.

Apply a dot of glue at the tip of each leaf and fold in half. This creates dimension.

Attach to the side of the apple stem with a glue gun.

Finally, cut small piece of ribbon and tie in three bows. Glue onto the front of each apple stem.

Now your apples are done and ready to display.

Gift to your child’s favorite teacher or school staff member as a thoughtful, handmade present for the end of the school year!

The post Wine Cork Apple Craft | Teacher Gift Idea appeared first on For the Love of Food.

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 DIY Upcycled Princess Crowns

What You Need:

• 4 Go & Grow by Similac pouches
• Colorful card stock paper
• elastic string
• hole punch
• hot glue gun
• scissors

Directions:

1. Once your toddler eats their Go & Grow by Similac pouches, cut off the tops under the spout {about the middle of the pouch} and discard.
2. Rinse out the pouches and let dry.
3. Using a hold punch, punch a hole on either side of the base of each pouch.
4. Measure out elastic string {depending on how you want it to fit the kids} and knot a piece of elastic through both holes, making a secure strap.
5.  
6. You can also trim down the pouch if you want it to be shorter, depending on the height you want for your crown. 
7. Cut a piece of card stock to fit folded around the width of the pouch, covering completely. 
8. Add hot glue to the back side of the card stock and gently press onto the pouch, smoothing down evenly.
9. Cut triangle points on the top to make a crown.
10. Optional: glue on jewels, rickrack, and glitter to make your crowns even fancier!
11. Repeat with remaining pouches and watch your kiddos have a blast with their new princess crowns! 

The post DIY Upcycled Princess Crowns and New Go & Grow by Similac Pouches appeared first on For the Love of Food.