I have seen Melted Crayon Rocks several times (like here on The Artful Parent) and each time they look SO fun.  When I ran across a basket of shells at the Dollar Tree, inspiration struck!  Why not try decorating the basket of seashells with melted crayons?

And they turned out SO beautifully!  I'm so glad we tried it!

I wanted to make the shells hot enough to melt the crayons, but not so hot as to create a bad burn.  They are definitely QUITE hot, so this activity is only appropriate for kiddos old enough to understand not to directly touch them. 

Because I didn't superheat them, they did lose heat over about 3-5 minutes.  So we figured the best system was to keep a tray of them in our oven (we used our toaster oven) and have me carefully remove them one at a time with an oven mit and place them on a pot holder.  S would decorate one at a time, and for some of the more intricate designs, we did need to pop them back in for 2 minutes to get their temperature back up so she was able to complete them.

We also used Glitter Crayons because we wanted a little extra sparkle, though any set of crayons should work for you.

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To make your own, you'll need a set of shells.  Our Dollar Tree sells a small plastic wrapped basket near the floral decorations - and that is what we used here.  Craft stores also have bags of shells on the floral aisle, or you can buy a set of shells from Amazon.  Heat the shells in an oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 5 minutes before starting.  As mentioned above, we recommend pulling one shell at a time to decorate.  Once you are done decorating, have an adult test the temperature before handing it over to a child for play.

For even more ways to decorate shells, check out this awesome post by Fun-A-Day!

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All activities here are activities I feel are safe for my own children.  As your child's parents/guardians, you will need to decide what you feel is safe for your family.  I always encourage contacting your child's pediatrician for guidance if you are not sure about the safety/age appropriateness of an activity. All activities on this blog are intended to be performed with adult supervision.  Appropriate and reasonable caution should be used when activities call for the use of materials that could potentially be harmful, such as scissors, or items that could present a choking risk (small items), or a drowning risk (water activities), and with introducing a new food/ingredient to a child (allergies).  Observe caution and safety at all times.  The author and blog disclaim liability for any damage, mishap, or injury that may occur from engaging in any of these activities on this blog.