As a kid, during the summer months, I often got to help my grandmother with yard work in her country home. One of the perks of working with all the dirt, flowers, and weeds (besides getting dirty) was my really cool rock collection. I must say,this rock collection was everything to me, until it got thrown out by accident one year. I can only imagine how much I would have liked to do a project like this with my rocks. I guess I’ll just have to start a new rock collection with my kids. Painting rocks is a wonderful activity for the kids on a long, golden summer afternoon. Instead of paint, this project uses wax crayons for a really cool effect. I know I’m going to get to re-live my childhood (at least for an hour) when I do this with my daughter.

What you’ll need:

• Smooth, flat rocks
• Aluminum foil
• Oven mitt
• Newspapers
• Old crayons

How to make it:

Step 1 – After you’ve gathered some smooth, flat rocks, clean them off, and bake them for 15 minutes on a foil-lined cookie sheet in a 225º oven.

Step 2 – Using an oven mitt, remove the rocks from the stove and set them on a pad of newspapers (note: the rocks will be very hot to the touch).

Step 3 – Remove the wrappers from some old crayons and draw on the stones — the heat will melt the crayons into vibrant liquid wax. For the swirly effect shown in the picture, hold each crayon against the rock in one place to create a puddle of color and use the end of the crayon to swirl it around.

Craft Source: Spoonful.com