Make Your Own Waterproof Matches!

Making waterproof matches at home isn't anything new. In fact, this instructable was inspired by "How To Make Waterproof Matches." But I wanted to make something original. I wanted to remake waterproof matches out of something unique. So, instead of using traditional candle wax to waterproof my matches, I used the classic kid's toy. Crayons!

• A Lighter
• A Disposable Plate
• A Crayon
• Several Matches
• A Knife or Razor

Using your knife, cut the paper wrapping off of your crayon. It doesn't matter what color the crayon is, but I used white crayons. Lay your matches out on the disposable plate, preferably putting the heads close together.

Fire up your lighter, and hold the tip of the crayon next to the flame. Rotate the crayon constantly, so as not to burn it. Let the melted crayon drip onto the match heads. It should cover all of the head, and about a 1/4" of the stick. Once a small puddle of crayon wax has gathered around the head of the match, pick up the match and roll it in the melted crayon. This is to ensure that the entire tip is covered in crayon wax. Remove the match from the puddle of wax, before it dries.

You have just made your own, completely unconventional, waterproof crayon matches! The picture above shows the matches floating in a bowl of water. I let them soak for about 5 minutes, and then tried them. They still worked! One of the upsides of using crayons instead of traditional candle wax, is that you don't have to remove the crayon wax before striking. You just need to dry them off and strike them. I'm not sure why this works, but it does! I know, because I did it!

I hope you enjoyed this instructable, and I hope you'll make some of your own "crayon matches". I also encourage you to comment and tell how well yours worked, and make suggestions for possible improvements. Thanks!