Making beautiful easy DIY Sun Catchers at home is a fun and easy craft activity that your kids will absolutely love. This simple wax paper and crayon craft is the perfect way to spend a creative afternoon together.
If you are looking for more simple and engaging crafts to do with your kids, you’ll also want to check out my post on Sand Castles That Will Last.
Easy DIY Sun Catchers
I am always on the hunt for kids’ activities that are accessible, easy, and made with things you already have at home. I don’t want you to visit my blog and say, “Cool, look what she can do. Good for her.”
My goal is to give you projects that anyone can make happen! This specific idea actually comes from my friend, Jackie, who graciously passed it along. Thank you, Jackie, for sending your idea my way—my kids absolutely loved making these.
Materials Needed for Sun Catchers
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- Crayons
- Pencil Sharpener
- Wax Paper
- Iron
- Scissors
- Old Rags or Towels
How to Make Crayon Sun Catchers
- Take your crayons and shred them up using a basic pencil sharpener, letting the shavings fall directly onto a piece of wax paper.
- Arrange the shredded crayons into any kind of color design or layout your kids prefer.
- Put another piece of wax paper right on top of the crayon shavings.
- Cover the wax paper sandwich with an old towel or rag you don’t care about, and lightly iron over it. Tip: I highly recommend putting another rag underneath the whole thing too, as I found the melting crayons can seep through a bit onto the surfaces above and below.
- Once ironed, the wax and crayons will fuse together into a beautiful, vibrant, stiff piece of paper. Cut these into any shapes your kids want! I encouraged my kids to look at the patterns to see what shapes they could find—kind of like looking for pictures in the clouds. As you can see in the photo, they did a snail, a fish, a heart, a seahorse, and a heart. If art isn’t your thing, you can find images to trace.
- Hang your finished creations on a bright window using a little bit of double-stick tape and enjoy the colors!
Want More Easy Craft Ideas for Kids?
Pipe Cleaner and Straw Word and Letter Making
Note: This post was originally written in 2012, but it was updated more recently for clarity and quality.
