Whenever my niece drops by, she brings a box of crayons to keep her busy in between our baking time. She is such an active girl and keeping her busy will definitely take up your time. Because of that, I have a big box of broken crayons in my bookshelf! She tells me that she will leave the crayons so she doesn’t have to bring any when she comes back, but she always brings in a new box every time. For her 5th birthday, I decided to make her personalized crayons using silicone molds. She really loved them! That is how I got the idea to for these creative gift ideas using the silicone molds.
Gift Ideas for Kids
I bought a new set of silicone molds specifically for making crayons. To be on the safe side, if you used your silicone molds for non-food items, don’t use them for food anymore. The silicone molds are easy to clean, but then again, let’s not take the risk. Make sure you have a set for non-food and food items.
Good thing that Kitchenatics silicone molds are oven-safe. I just peel off the paper from the crayons, cut them into small bits, and place them in the silicone molds. The emoji molds are larger and can hold about 5ml of liquid so I used them. I preheated the oven to 220 F and let the crayons melt for about 20 minutes. The wax will cool in about 30 minutes. Make sure you also have proper ventilation when heating the wax.
Gift Ideas for Adults
I really wanted to make DIY soaps as gifts but I am not comfortable with the thought of handling lye. I found this simple article on how to make organic soap and am looking forward to try it someday. Anyway, I decided to make some fridge magnets instead of soap since they look easier for me to do.
What You Need
- silicone mold trays with designs of your choice
- glitters
- letter or image cut outs
- multi-purpose sealer or white craft glue
- 2 small paintbrushes
- Envirotex Lite
- transparent dye (color of your choice)
- white acrylic paint
- 3/4-inch round ceramic magnets
- hot glue gun
- clear craft glue
Instructions
- Brush the silicone molds with cooking oil or apply cooking spray.
- Mix 1 ounce each of resin and hardener. Make sure to read package instructions. Mix well for about 2 minutes, making sure to scrape the sides of the mixing containers.
- Pour into another cup and stir for another minute.
- Pour into the bottom of each of the molds.
- Sprinkle some glitter in the molds and cover for 25 minutes as it sets. Remove any air bubbles by gentle blowing over it. Repeat after 15 minutes as needed. Let the resin harden for 3 to 4 hours.
- Add the letter or image cutouts to the resin.
- To add some color, repeat steps 2 and 3 and add color of your choice. Mix well and pour in the silicone molds.
- Let it set for 3 to 4 hours. Remember to remove any air bubbles.
- Once the resin has set, you can pop them out of the silicone molds. You can paint them with acrylic paint as you wish.
- Get a glue gun and stick the magnets at the back of the resin molds.
I hope you will have fun trying out these simple crafts. You can also teach your kids these crafts and keep them busy. It’s a productive and artistic way to spend time while at home. Plus, you won’t have to worry about buying gifts!
Stay tuned for more tips and gift ideas. Don’t forget to share this article with your friends and family!
