I recently started researching non-toxic crayons because Max, the toddler, loves to draw with crayons and Alexa, the baby, loves to put said crayons in her mouth.
Let’s just say I was more than appalled to learn that crayons have been a source of lead (1994), mercury (2013, Philippines), and asbestos (2000 and as recently as 2015)!
Most commercial crayons (e.g. Crayola) are made mainly from paraffin wax, which is derived from petroleum byproducts. It starts as a grayish-black sludge that is left over after the petroleum refining process, once all of the other petroleum-based products (gas, pavement, oil) have been extracted. It is then bleached and processed, both steps that require the use of toxic chemicals. Paraffin is generally considered to be non-toxic but the process of making it certainly is not!
With that being said, these are the three main waxes from natural and renewable resources that can be used to make crayons:
Beeswax – made from the honeycomb. It can be a little sticky but pure beeswax crayons smell delicious!
Soy wax – made from soybeans. Soy wax is the softest of the three waxes and may be less durable. It is also worth noting that soybean wax is likely non-GMO and may contain pesticide residue.
Carnauba wax – made from the leaves of a Brazilian palm tree. It is the hardest of the three waxes so it may be more brittle and prone to breakage.
Keep in mind that the main drawback to these natural waxes is that they will not perform as well as paraffin wax. You’re not going to be an art major drawing with these crayons. But, for babies and toddlers, they are the safest options.
List of Best Non-Toxic Crayons:
- Honey Sticks
- Clear Hills Honey Company
- Colour Blocks
- Wee Can Too
- Eco-Kids
- Crayon Rocks
- A Childhood Store
- Earth Grown Crayons
- Filana
*I have short written reviews for several of the listed crayons brands that I have in my possession. These crayons were either purchased by me or gifted to me*
100% Pure Beeswax
Honey Sticks
Honey Sticks beeswax crayons are short and stubby, perfect for little hands to practice drawing. Due to the nature of the material, they are slightly tacky and may pick up lint but they smell delicious. The colors are vibrant and glide on effortlessly. I also love their wide selection of color choices. When it’s time to draw, I find that I tend to grab these crayons first.
Ingredients: beeswax; non-toxic pigments
Origin: handmade in New Zealand
Clear Hills Honey Company
These crayons are chunky and more traditionally shaped, produced by a small, family-owned business in the US that specializes in honey and beeswax-based products. I received a sample and I must say that these crayons are among my favorites. The beeswax has a subtle, sweet scent that is not overly cloying. (Although Honeysticks smell great, the scent can be pretty strong.) I also love that these crayons are wrapped so that the tackiness is less noticeable. Unfortunately, the color selection is not as diverse as I’d like and have a very “earthy” tone to them.
Ingredients: beeswax; non-toxic pigments & clays
Origin: handmade in USA
Colour Blocks
These chunky blocks are easy to manipulate for small hands and can create a variety of lines. They are also great for shading large areas. I received a sample to try and my main concern is that the crayons did not smell sweet like beeswax. I read that beeswax can smell differently depending on the quality and how it’s processed and it just did not smell good to me.
Ingredients: beeswax; mineral pigments
Origin: handmade in USA
Other Waxes/Blends
Wee Can Too
Wee Can Too Veggie Baby Crayons are block-shaped crayons that are completely edible and made from organic, food-grade ingredients. However, due to the nature of food-based pigments, the colors are definitely lighter and less vibrant. The soft soy wax flakes a bit more when drawing and leaves a waxy residue on the paper. I think these crayons are ideal for babies who want to be able to experiment with coloring but who might, on occasion, still sneak a nibble. These are the crayons I let Alexa eat, I mean, draw with.
Ingredients: organic soy wax; organic fruit, vegetable and mineral pigments
Origin: made in USA
Eco-Crayons
Eco-Kids Eco-Crayons “sea rocks” are assorted rock-shaped crayons that come in 8 colors. Due to the unusual shapes, a wide variety of markings can be created. The colors vary in vibrancy with black and brown being the boldest and green and orange being the most muted (to my untrained eye, at least.) Many of the online reviews complain about flaking and brittleness. However, I believe the crayons have since been reformulated (without carnauba wax) as I found them to be durable crayons with minimal flaking.
Ingredients: beeswax, soy wax, and stearic acid (a fatty acid that is derived from the oils of plants/animals – a.k.a. tallow); mineral pigments
Origin: handmade in USA
Crayon Rocks
Ingredients: soy wax; mineral pigments
Origin: made in USA
A Childhood Store
Ingredients: beeswax and soy wax
Origin: handmade in USA
Earth Grown Crayons
Ingredients: soy wax; mineral or organic pigments
Origin: handmade in USA
Filana
Ingredients: 25% organic beeswax and other natural, non-petroleum based waxes and oils, including GMO-free soy wax; organic and inorganic pigments, and kaolin clay
Origin: handmade in USA
What are your thoughts on the crayons that I have listed? Let me know if I may have missed any other great non-toxic crayon brands!
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Thank you for this great list and your comments!
Happy to help! 🙂
Any ideas for non-toxic markers? The list above was very helpful. I went and bought a few different brands of crayons listed above. Thanks!
Hi Eilene, I’d love to know which crayons you like the most!
As for non-toxic markers, it’s a lot harder to assess the toxicity of markers because the type of ink/liquid/pigment used is rarely listed. More often than not, you will have toxicity issues. And, unfortunately, the only truly non-toxic markers I’ve found were made by Clementine Art, but I think they’ve since gone out of business!
I want to make things for skin with crayons but it said wax crayon on crayon label and I need non toxic so is it same or not, non toxic and wax crayon…vastly reply I need answer
“Wax” does not mean it’s non-toxic. There are many different types of waxes. You’ll have to find out what type of wax is used for the crayon you’re interested in using.
Hello! Great write-up. I want to get the We Can Too crayons for my 1 year old, is it easy to wipe/wash off table surfaces/clothes etc?
To be quite honest, when I first introduced We Can Too crayons to Alexa, she spent more time trying to eat them than drawing with them. At that age, I wouldn’t leave a baby unsupervised with art supplies so it was pretty easy to direct her to draw on paper when she did attempt to make markings.
With that being said, I don’t think it would be harder to wash/wipe off than any other crayon. The pigment is more subtle as well.
Now that Alexa has graduated to more pigmented crayons, one of her favorite things is drawing on our walls, floors, furniture…
Hi Lotus, I found your blog while searching for beeswax crayons. My company manufactures main lesson books for Waldorf and Waldorf inspired schools and we’re researching all-natural products to package with ours as an alternative to those made overseas. I wanted to thank you for all the useful information provided. There are a lot of companies out there I was unaware of.
Hi Pete, I’m glad my guide was useful! It’s nice that you are putting so much thought into your lesson books and materials.
Try Stockmar. They come in either blocks or crayons and are of good quality including beeswax.
Another good brand is Stabilo Woody. I like to use them myself, but they’re intended for children. They are watersoluble and as I tend to lick of smudges instead of washing my hands I am as of now shying away from grown-up aquarell colors (cadmium and the like waaaaaaaaaaaahhh).
Thank you for the suggestions. These look great for older kids but I’m not able to find the composition of the wax so I don’t feel comfortable recommending it to babies and toddlers who still regularly stick things in their mouths!
Perhaps they have changed, but I checked out the Colour Blocks and they don’t mention beeswax anywhere. They’ve just melted down (recycled) old crayons and re-shaped them into blocks.
Hi Victoria, you’re right! It looks like they don’t see the beeswax version anymore.