Have you ever researched the ingredients in crayons? You may be surprised to find paraffin wax (derived from petroleum, coal, or oil shale) can cause a variety of health problems including gastrointestinal upset. According to the United States National Library of Medicine eating paraffin wax can "lead to intestinal obstruction, which can cause abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and possible constipation." It also takes up to 100 years to decompose and many toxic chemicals are used in the process of making paraffin wax crayons.
Since my kids are into painting and coloring, I had to find some non-toxic options for my little guys. They are still young (3 and 4) so these Wee Can Too products are perfect for them, especially for the little guy who likes to eat everything even though I remind him EVERY SINGLE TIME not to eat art supplies. Wee Can Too products are dairy-free, gluten-free, vegan, wheat-free, sugar-free, preservative-free, and all are plant based. They are also made here in the United States.
I would recommend these non-toxic art supplies for kids 3 and under.
Veggie Sidewalk Chalk
The kids immediately went for the giant sidewalk chalk (pictured above) as soon as we opened the package. I love it because it is not made of lead and the kids love it (especially my oldest) because it does not break like other chalk. He had a blast drawing rainbows, animals, shapes, and Picasso art on our asphalt driveway.Ingredients: bentonite clay, organic blueberry powder, organic hibiscus powder, organic turmeric powder, organic spinach powder, organic beet power, organic pumpkin powder, natural fruit acid
Organic Veggie Crayons
If you can imagine small teeth marks all over the crayons pictured below, it would be the current status of our crayons. My little guy just loves to destroy everything and crayons are no exception. I knew before trying these crayons they would end up in his mouth because loves to bite chunks out of my beeswax candles.These crayons are meant for the younger crowd as you can probably tell by the shape. The texture of the wax and the color it leaves behind, probably would not impress older children but for my 3-year-old, they are perfect!
Ingredients:organic soy wax (non-GMO), organic blueberry powder, organic hibiscus powder, organic turmeric powder, organic spinach powder, organic beet power
Ingredients:organic soy wax (non-GMO), organic blueberry powder, organic hibiscus powder, organic turmeric powder, organic spinach powder, organic beet power
All Natural Finger Paints
We finally just used up all the Wee Can Too paints we had, I need to order more. The boys never used the paint for painting on paper instead, they LOVE to use it as body paint. I mix up a bowl full and set it on the floor (on top of a sheet), they dig right in painting themselves as tigers and frogs.These finger paints would be perfect for small children just starting out on their artistic journey. I caught my little man eating some but felt relieved after reminding myself the ingredients are edible.
Ingredients:organic blueberry powder, organic beet powder, organic pumpkin powder, orgnaic spinach powder
Sources:
Paraffin Poisoning from United States National Library of Medicine
How Crayons Are Made from MadeHow.com
Ingredients:organic blueberry powder, organic beet powder, organic pumpkin powder, orgnaic spinach powder
Other Wee Can Too Products
Wee Can Too also has veggie dough which will be included in my next purchase. We experimented with moon sand so it is time to graduate to natural play dough. Bookmark their natural egg dying kit too for next Easter (if you celebrate it).Sources:
Paraffin Poisoning from United States National Library of Medicine
How Crayons Are Made from MadeHow.com