A bird on a wire in black paper over cool runsPale blue, teal, green. No mask. Heat from above. Bird and wire are cut from paper and added last.
A star left clean in the center of gold and yellow runsGold, yellow, orange. A five-point paper star taped down. Heat from above, aimed around the star.
A two-color striped curtain of evenly melted runsTwo colors, alternating across the top. Nothing masked. Heat from above, moved evenly so the stripes match.
A corner fan of wax rays spreading from one propped-up cornerAny six neighbors on the color wheel. Nothing masked. Canvas propped on its corner, heat aimed down at it.
A fade from palest blue to navy, crayon by crayonPalest blue to navy, left to right. Nothing masked. Heat moves slowly across the top, pointing down.
A full rainbow fixed along the top edge and run to the bottomRed, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet. Nothing masked. Heat aimed down from the top edge.
A stubby wax fringe stopped early beneath the crayon rowA full box in any order. Nothing masked. Heat for a moment and stop while the runs are still short.
A sunburst from a ring of crayons, the canvas turned as it meltsYellow, gold, orange around a center circle. Nothing masked. Heat at the middle, canvas turned a quarter each time.
A two-color striped curtain of evenly melted runsTwo colors, alternating across the top. Nothing masked. Heat from above, moved evenly so the stripes match.
Black and white runs on a mid-gray canvasWhite, pale gray, charcoal, black. Nothing masked. Heat from above. The gray shows between the runs.
Hanging vines in four greens with paper leaves added afterLime, leaf green, forest green, olive. Nothing masked. Heat from above. Glue paper leaves on the cooled runs.
Icicles: pale drips of uneven length on a black canvasWhite, silver, pale blue. Nothing masked. Heat in short bursts so the runs stay different lengths.
Sideways wind streaks across a wide canvasTeal, white, pale gray. Nothing masked. Canvas stood on its short side, then turned back when cool.
Slanted rain from a diagonal row of crayonsGray, pale blue, mid blue, repeated. Nothing masked. Canvas tilted so the runs lean one way.
Sunset runs in warm colors onlyYellow, orange, pink, red, in that order from the middle outward. Nothing masked. Heat from above.
Tall grass grown upward from the bottom edgeThree greens and one yellow along the bottom. Nothing masked. Canvas upside down while the heat is on.
Warm runs and cool runs growing toward each other from opposite edgesWarm colors on one edge, cool on the other. Nothing masked. Heat one edge, let it cool, flip the canvas, heat again.
Masked shapes and silhouettes 14
A bird on a wire in black paper over cool runsPale blue, teal, green. No mask. Heat from above. Bird and wire are cut from paper and added last.
A child in boots under a cut-paper umbrella, glued on afterRainbow order with a gap in the middle. No mask. Heat from above. The black paper figure goes in the gap.
A full moon kept bare on a black canvasWhite, pale blue, violet. A jar-lid circle of paper taped high up. Heat from above.
A paper jellyfish whose tentacles are the dripsPink, violet, pale blue. No mask. Heat aimed below the bell so only the tentacles run.
A skyline along the bottom where the color stops at the roofsDusk colors: violet, pink, orange. A paper skyline taped over the lower third. Heat from above.
A star left clean in the center of gold and yellow runsGold, yellow, orange. A five-point paper star taped down. Heat from above, aimed around the star.
A taped heart left bare inside a rainbow runRainbow order. A heart of masking tape in the middle. Heat from above. Peel the tape slowly.
A word in tape letters that appears when the tape liftsAny six colors. A short word in tape capitals across the middle. Heat from above.
A zigzag of bare canvas like lightning through dark dripsNavy, violet, charcoal. One torn zigzag of tape from top to bottom. Heat from above.
An umbrella shape kept clean while the colors run down around itRainbow order. A paper umbrella taped at the center is the mask. Heat from above, peeled when cool.
Mountains left bare by a torn-paper mask under a pink wax skyPink, orange, yellow. A torn paper ridge taped along the bottom. Heat from above.
Rain falling from a paper cloud that hides the crayonsBlues and grays. No mask on the canvas. The cloud is glued over the crayon row once it has cooled.
Three clean circles left as balloons, with pen stringsAny bright colors. Three taped paper circles near the top. Heat from above. Strings drawn in after.
Your initial in tape, revealed under yellow-to-red waxYellow, orange, red. A block letter built from tape strips is the mask. Heat from above, pointing down.
Shavings pressed between two sheets 12
A butterfly with matching wings, cut on the fold of a pressed sheetAny four brights on one half only. No mask. Press, cool, then cut a butterfly with the fold as its body.
A color wheel pressed from six separate piles of shavingsRed, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, one wedge each. Keep the piles apart before pressing.
A fish with shavings laid in colored rowsTeal, green, gold, in rows. No mask. Press, cool, then cut the fish out and add a pen eye.
A galaxy bookmark in blues and violetNavy, violet, a pinch of white. No mask. Press, then trim to a strip and around the corners.
A lantern sleeve rolled around a jar that holds a battery candleWarm colors, sprinkled thin so light gets through. No mask. Press, then roll the sheet around a jar.
A round sun catcher of warm shavingsYellow, orange, red, sprinkled thin. No mask. Pressed between two sheets of wax paper under a warm iron.
A turtle shell dome cut from pressed patches of three greensThree greens and a little brown in separate patches. Press, cut a dome shape and draw the plates in pen.
A window panel of jewel colors behind a cut black paper frameJewel colors in patches. The frame is cut from black paper and glued on after pressing.
A window snowflake snipped from a pale blue pressed sheetWhite and pale blue. No mask. Press and cool, fold the sheet in six and snip notches.
Bunting triangles cut from one marbled sheetA whole handful, mixed. No mask. Press once, cut triangles and tape them to a string.
Fall leaves in maple and oak shapes cut from a red-gold sheetRed, orange, gold, brown. No mask. Iron over a cloth, then cut leaf shapes when the sheet is cool.
Pastel-swirled eggs snipped from one pressing, strung as a garlandPastels, two or three per egg. No mask. Press one sheet, then cut every egg from it.
How it works
A crayon is a stick of colored wax, and warm wax runs. These crayon melting art ideas, written for adults, use that three ways. An adult holds the hair dryer or the iron every time.
Read the full guide
Three ways to melt a crayon
Drips down a canvas has an adult glue peeled crayons along the top edge, then warm them so the wax runs. Masked shapes and silhouettes tapes paper over part of the canvas first, so an umbrella, a moon or a word stays clean. Shavings pressed between two sheets irons grated crayon inside wax paper, under a cloth.
Creative crayon melting art ideas
The less usual ones turn the canvas: a sunburst from a ring of crayons, tall grass grown upward from the bottom edge, and wind streaks made with the canvas stood on its short side.
The heat is an adult's job. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission's craft guide says: no open flame to melt wax, no overheating, and ventilation.
Peel the paper wrapper off each crayon before it goes on the canvas.
Cover the table and the wall behind before the heat goes on.
Questions and answers
How do you melt crayons for art?
This list uses two ways. For drips, an adult glues peeled crayons along a canvas edge and warms them with a hair dryer. For pressed pieces, shavings go between two sheets of wax paper and an adult irons them under a cloth.
What can you make with melted crayons?
Forty pieces in this list: rainbow and sunset runs, shapes kept clean by tape such as an umbrella or a full moon, and pressed sheets cut into sun catchers, bunting and bookmarks.
What are crayons made of?
A crayon is a pigmented wax stick. The standard wax crayon is made mostly of paraffin wax, with pigment for the color.