I LIke Big Words and I Cannot Lie

I like big words and I cannot lie...you otha brothas can't deny...when a girl walks in with a....AHEM...sorry.  Today's smarty-smart word is "encaustic!"  Say it with me:  en-caus-tic.  Awesome sauce.


Ok, so I have been wanting to do this project for SUCH a long time!  I know the word "encaustic" sounds all fancy-shmancy, but all it means is a painting done with hot wax.  In other words, MELTED CRAYONS!  Why didn't I just say so, you ask?  Because I live amongst littles all day long and rarely get to use big, smart words like "encaustic."  :o)
Soooooo...to get started, all you need is a canvas, some paint (spray or brush-on, whatever you want), a foil muffin tin, and a whole mess of crayons.  I'm going to use all the random crayon bits that have accumulated over the years.  *Make sure you take the wrappers off. (DUH.)

I had a canvas left over from an art class I taught last year.  It was a collage that a student didn't want to keep, and there was a really cool picture on there...at first, I didn't want to cover him up.

 
I wanted some texture on the canvas, so I used torn-up pieces of tissue paper and mod podged them on.  Once dry, I put a coat of white paint over everything to even out the color, and cover up Mr. Face.  
Once you know what you want your background color to be, paint your canvas and let it dry.  I wanted a wash effect, so I diluted my paint a bit and brushed it on, making a streaky look.  I used two colors, French Blue and Pool Blue.  

Here comes the fun part:  Heat your oven to 200, then put your muffin tin(s) on a cookie sheet and pop them in.  It takes a while for all the pieces to melt, so feel free to go play on Pinterest while you wait. :o)

You'll need to work somewhat close to your oven, so you can pop your crayons back in there every so often to re-melt.  They cool pretty fast!
Now go all Jackson Pollock on this thing and start dripping wax in random patterns, all over the canvas.  This can be a great project to do with kids, as long as your kids take direction well.  Add as many or as few drips and colors as you want.  You can leave at that, and have an awesomely textured, colorful piece of art, or you can be like me, who can't leave anything well enough alone.  I wanted more. :o)

I was making this for Zoe's room, and decided to put a butterfly right in the middle of the canvas.  I started with the outline, dripping the darkest colors around until I had my basic shape, antennae, and body.  Then I just filled in the wings with color, and voila!

Zoe approves. :o)  If you try this, I want to see!  Send me a picture!  Also, try to use the word, "encaustic" when you tell people about your masterpiece.  They'll be impressed...you know you like big words.