No-Heat Crayon Batik This is a great project for using up old, broken crayons. Unlike many batik projects, this one doesn’t require using an iron, so less adult supervision is needed.

What you'll need:

• Crayons
• Heavy sheet of paper, such as construction paper (not copy paper)
• Black or dark tempera paint
• Paintbrush or 1” foam brush
• Pencil
• Small cup or container to hold tempera paint
• Several large sheets of newspaper
• A large bowl or container of water
• Bounty® paper towels

Directions:

1. Decide on a design for your picture. You might want to draw your design on another sheet of paper first, or draw it very lightly in pencil on your paper.
2. Remove the paper covering on the crayons you plan to use. Use the sides of the crayons (not the tips), pressing down very hard to fill your paper with color. Make bold, colorful designs or patterns and cover as much of the white background as you can.
3. When you’re finished with your design, carefully immerse your paper in a bowl or container of water at room temperature. While your paper is under water, gently crumple it into a ball. This entire process should take about 10 seconds.
4. Remove the paper ball from the container and very carefully squeeze out any excess water. Gently smooth out the crumpled ball and spread it out on sheets of newspaper. Blot any remaining drops of water with a paper towel.
5. Pour about 1/4 cup of tempera paint into a cup or small container and thin the paint with a little water. Paint a black wash over the crumpled paper and let it dry.
6. Your paper will tear easily, so handle it very gently. Torn spots can be taped on the back once the paper is completely dry.
7. Clean up your brush with soap, water, and paper towels.