crayons

Since beginning our work at Spiral Garden, we have undertaken a great deal of research into the products we stock, wanting to bring our customers the best quality range of ethical and environmentally friendly products we can find. We're still working our way through the range, seeing if we can improve it. We've asked why our popular products are so popular and what our customers love about them best. We've also looked into their manufacturing, shipping process and ingredients lists, where possible.

It's not always an easy task to find the nitty gritty on certain products. And many we take for granted as being "safe", "non-toxic" and "harmless", when a little further research suggests perhaps they are not 100% so... It's quite an eye-opening process and as such, certain products may not be re-stocked as we find they do not meet our expectations. Or, we'll continue to stock them but let you know their credentials as much as we can. With all that in mind, to begin with, our attention turned to art supplies in the garden and today, I'm going to tell you all about our range of crayons and the process we've undertaken to understand them and bring you the range we have.

The first product we bought from Spiral Garden, as customers many years ago, was a tin of Stockmar Beeswax Crayons. They are so beautifully packaged in their sturdy little tin. Their bright rainbow colours in block or stick form... They smell like honey! And they last a series of toddlers, as our set can attest. These are artist quality crayons, meaning the colours are bright and bold. They glide onto the paper and their colour stays fast. Unfortunately it stays fast to the walls too, another fact our series of toddlers have demonstrated...

The shape of the Stockmar Block Crayons is fantastic for small hands to hold and begin drawing and experimenting with colour. Our children held them and enjoyed making their first marks on paper at only nine months! If you want a great to use, artist quality beeswax crayon that will last forever, this is it. Something our research has turned up is that, while Stockmar crayons do contain pure beeswax, they also contain a minimum of 10% paraffin (we've heard it may be even higher than this), among other chemicals which are used to help the colours stay fast and the crayons non-sticky and solid for years. Their pigments are often reported as "food safe" and "natural" when in actual fact they are pigments safe for use in food packaging, not food itself and some pigments are organic, while others are inorganic.

Paraffin in crayons, whilst being non-toxic and safe for human use, is made from petroleum, which in itself is toxic and not something I'm super comfortable with my toddlers ingesting and is one reason we've avoided buying commercial brands of parrafin crayons.

But its only a little alarming, when I consider many of the other things our toddlers have ingested... Overall, we love these crayons. Stockmar is an ethical company as far as we can tell and while not all product information is displayed transparently, basic information is generally accessible. They are made in Germany and shipped to a distributor in Australia who ships them to our local supplier in Tasmania... there's a fair bit of handling involved.

After assessing all this information about Stockmar Crayons, we needed to understand the crayon making process. We procured a block of local beeswax and made our own and learnt that we are not so great at making attractive crayons ourselves! But, we did understand more about the process, the chemicals and how they work to get the colour onto the paper.

So next we found the most natural crayon we could. Busy Bee Beeswax Crayons are made with Beeswax, natural pigments and clays. That's it. They are sticky to touch, so the wrapper is handy. We're thinking they may break a little more easily than Stockmar crayons, although this hasn't happened yet. Their colours are very natural looking. So natural that they lend themselves very well to drawing nature and in particular, the Australian landscape. The colours remind us of Tasmania.

These crayons are not what I would describe as artist quality. They are more transparent and they don't have the same glide as Stockmar crayons which we understand from our crayon-making experiments... But they are still beautiful to use and in the hands of an artist, any tool can create a thing of beauty.  They smell like honey! And they come direct from the hive, being made in the US by a family company with natural parenting values akin to our own. We love these crayons so much that we're thrilled to have become the Australian distributors for them.

Looking at our crayon range so far and Spiral Garden's historically most popular products, we decided to reintroduce a vegan option. And we are thrilled with Crayon Rocks. They are bright, great quality, fun to use... They look like jelly beans! They come in a gorgeous red velvet pouch which adds a little magic and is super transportable - perfect when we go outside to draw and can throw them in a bag or basket. Crayon Rocks are made from soy wax, and a mix of other waxes including carnauba wax, mineral pigments and limestone. They are kosher too.

Crayon Rocks are made ethically, by a small company in the US and ship directly to us. They work fantastically for little growing hands and have been recommended by occupational therapists for helping to develop children's tripod grip, ready for pencils and pens as their skills develop. They are best used with supervision and are not recommended for children under 3yrs because they are a choking hazard, although our toddler has been ok with them as she's moved past popping things in her mouth. We just love that they are so special and fun and offer something different for our art supply cupboard.

We find that our children choose crayons to suit what they are doing and they mix and match them if the mood strikes.

We leave crayons in a space where they can easily reach them, near sketch books or paper, and they use them readily as they play and learn about colour.

If you'd like any additional information on our crayons, we'd be happy to provide as much knowledge as we can. If you are a retailer, school or community group, we offer wholesale prices for bulk purchases of our Busy Bee Beeswax Crayons. 

Shopping for Artists

Quality art supplies are such a delight to artists of all ages. They improve results and are a pleasure to use. Here are some gift ideas for your arty loved ones...

Stockmar Colour Circle Paints
Set of three colours (red, yellow, blue)
Just $26.00 per set.
Try our glass paint jars for storing them in, $1.65 each.
For more information on techniques
for using Stockmar art products, click here.

Kindergarten Paint Brush from Mercurius.
18mm brush of amazing quality, just $14.00.

I get excited by crayons, after years of enduring the average quality ones available in most department stores. The ones above are Crayon Rocks, soy-based crayons from the USA which are vegan-friendly and help prepare little hands for handwriting. They also look great, don't they? More stock (in two sizes) due from the USA in time for your Christmas orders. Stay tuned. Just $10.00 for the pack of 16 vibrant colours.

The delicious-smelling Honey Sticks are so sturdy and yet they deliver smooth, bright colours when in use. Ingredients include beeswax and non-toxic pigments, and the stubby design means that these crayons will last! Just $13.00.

Stockmar Block Crayons - quality you can trust from Germany. These come in a metal tin, in a set of eight bright colours. Ideas for using Stockmar crayons can be found here. Only $16.50 from Spiral Garden, much less than you'd pay elsewhere!

A perfect addition to any gift of crayons are these fabulous hand-made wool felt pencil cases from a Fair Trade supplier through Mercurius Australia. Available in a variety of colours and only $9.50 each!

Once customers discover Mercurius' Main Lesson Books, they always come back for more. These can be used in classrooms, in homeschooling, as journals, for many different art mediums and methods, or just for fun! They include 32 pages of quality paper with onion skin paper in between to help preserve artwork. Just $4.00 per book.

Lyra Pencils are the longest-lasting pencils which
are a delight to hold and use. From $2.60.

Lyra Sharpener - look, it's not plastic!
$3.20 each, suits most sizes of pencil.

We stock dozens of other quality art products at Spiral Garden. Happy Shopping!

Shopping for Boys

Of course, most of our products appeal to both boys and girls, but in my experience, the items below have been especially popular with boys...

Felt Horse, 14cm high and only $18.00

Aussie Anamalz with pouch $34.95.

Debresk Vehicles, from $9.50

Lyra Skin Colour Pencils $18.00 - for painting faces without the mess or skin irritation!

Stockmar Block Crayons - tough but still delightful to use!
$16.50 (pay up to $22 at other Aussie retailers)
Give with a quality blank book!

Solid Wooden Fish Xylophone $27.00

Claves $11.50

Eco Clay $30.00, add a rolling pin.

Animal Tails $12.00.

Juggling Balls - set of 3.
Current stock includes lots of blue, green and brown tones.
Just $20.00 per set.

All-in-one house - a dollhouse and puzzle in one.
Use for little gnomes or other figures.
Made in Germany by Kaefer.
$60.00
Gnomes in stock include Earth Gnomes, Season Gnomes and Gnome Families.

Birthday Time

It's birthday time at our place!

We have some birthday traditions such as the birthday child choosing their own cake, and the evening meal for their birthday. On the morning of their birthday we gather around the dining table or on Mum & Dad's bed whilst they unwrap their gifts and open the cards which have come in the mail. There are often a number of little handmade, wrapped gifts from siblings which are given with pride and accepted with grace. Brithday cards are secretly handmade by a sibling, and given with the gifts from the whole family.

During the day we will often have friends over for morning or afternoon tea under the trees in our garden (weather permitting) with a cake and some yummy fruit and other foods to share. The table is often decorated with a colourful cloth and fresh flowers collected by the other children.

We enjoy the traditional candles and "Happy Birthday" song as well as clapping for their age and three cheers. We always have a cake at night, even if we've had one in the daytime, just so we can turn down the lights and enjoy the magic of a cake lit by candlelight.

Sometimes we use different crockery or glasses for the birthday meal, and there is always a beautiful tablecloth and centre candle, and quite often more flowers.

Birthday cards are displayed on a magnetic framed board which hangs above the season table. Photos of the birthday child are also displayed their during the weeks preceding and following their special day. Often some baby photos and recent photos will be side by side. A photograph is taken of the birthday child with their cake each year, marking milestones in their childhood photo albums. Sometimes the birthday child will wear a special item of clothing, or a cape and crown from our dress-up basket.

We don't always have parties. We have had a fairy party, a musical party, a teddy bear's picnic, trip to special places followed by cake in the park... But even when there is no big event we always have a special time with family, and perhaps some nearby friends, to share cake and other food, sing and celebrate the birthday child's life.

On their birthday, our children don't have to do their chores if they don't wish to, and they can have the choice of a story read or movie watched, as well as what food we eat. It is a day of lavishing extra love and attention on the birthday child.

We all know this song...
Happy birthday to you Happy birthday to you Happy birthday, dear Lily Happy birthday to you!

Well, here's an alternative, or second verse (same melody)...
May the angels bless you, In all that you do, May the stars up in heaven Shine down upon you!

There are a lot of birthday verses and stories online which we have often told our younger children, especially. I find that they also like to hear about the day they were born, and the wonderful, cute and funny things about them as a baby.

This one is our version of a favourite...

As I yawn and go to bed,
Laying down my sleepy head,
Mama switches off the light,
I'll still be seven years old tonight.

But, from the very break of day,
Before the children rise and play,
Before the greenness turns to gold,
Tomorrow, I'll be eight years old!

Eight kisses when I wake.
Eight candles on my cake!

During the day, grandparents phone from far away and ask the birthday child about their day, their gifts, and how big they've grown. Receiving their very own phone calls and mail is a special part of having a birthday at our place.

I wonder, in what ways do you celebrate birthdays in your home?

Birthday gift ideas include:

Bamboo Knitting Needles (or crochet hooks, or knitting helper) with a selection of either pastel or bright wool and instructions on how to create either a beanie or a scarf. These products start at $4.50.

Gorgeous Wool Felt Pencil Cases (or a pencil box) filled with any of our art products such as Lyra Pencils, eraser and sharpener, Stockmar Crayons, or Honey Sticks for little ones.

Cute enamel tea cup and saucer sets on their own or matched with pure wool felt tea party sets create a gift sure to engage their imagination.

Other great gifts: include calico bags with fabric pens, musical instruments, aprons with wooden spoons and rolling pins (add your favourite recipes), books, a seasonal silk or doll representing the season of the child's birth, main lesson books with art supplies, felt purses or paper jewelery boxes with jewelery, bags for gifts and books and toys and more, a cute wooden vehicle or felt toy... Spiral Garden is all about gifts. Ethical gifts that will last for many years. We offer thoughtful and affordable alternatives to the plethora of plastic, licensed, sub-standard items readily available in department and toy stores. Come in and take a look around...

Cooking with Kids

Our children have been involved with helping prepare meals for a few years now. Initially it was my husband's idea, and I was hesitant to share my kitchen and deal with the mess! But by working one-on-one with my four older children, they are now capable of making meals by themselves.

Our 15 year old helps with two meals each week, I do two meals alone, and the 13, 12 and 10 year olds each help with one meal per week. First they wash their hands (or have a shower if they're quite grubby from outdoor play) and clear away dishes or anything else cluttering the bench space. We often wear aprons to protect our clothes, which adds to the atmosphere of getting on with something important. The menu is planned ahead, of course, so we always know how much time to allow. Some preparation tasks happen in the morning, also noted on the meal plan/family calendar.

Once the kitchen is ready to go we gather ingredients - they often start peeling vegetables or cutting up salad whilst I duck out to the garden for any home grown produce required. We put other ingredients from pantry and fridge onto the bench so everything is at hand. As we use it, we put the items away. We also rinse and stack utensils used along the way, and wipe up any spills. This is my way of using a kitchen, and I hope to pass the habit on to them so that cooking sessions don't end up with a big clean-up resulting!

Together we share the task of getting things cooking - measuring, adding, using the Thermomix or rice cooker and chatting as we go. Meanwhile, I am calling the other children in from outdoors to have a shower and clear and set the table so that by the time the food is ready, so are we. Our family eats together every evening.

Each week the children pick up a new skill or two in the kitchen, spend some time with Mum and help the family by preparing a meal. I encourage other family members to express gratitude for their efforts. I try to vary the meals they prepare, starting with basics like pasta. I also try to frequently schedule their favourite foods on the nights they're cooking, to keep them enthusiastic about the task. Since we bought our Thermomix a few months ago, they've been a little hesitant with using it, but as they watch and learn and try things for themselves, they appreciate it more.

We have had the odd burnt pan, some interesting herb or spice additions, and occasionally not quite enough to go around (because I wasn't on hand and they didn't peel and cook enough vegies, for example). But there's been nothing we couldn't eat, and a quick dessert of fruit and yoghurt or custard fills hungry tummies! And really, I could count the kitchen mishaps on one hand, so they're all doing really well.

Two of the girls are great bakers - better than me, I think! They bake at least once a week, which is more often than me, that's for sure. I rarely buy any prepared snack foods, biscuits etc, so that encourages them to make yummies for themselves and the family.


My younger two children are now joining me on "my" nights of cooking to peel some vegetables, put clean dishes away, fetch ingredients and just spend a little time together. Hopefully the six children will all know a lot about food and nutrition, cooking and cleanliness by the time they're grown.

Once we've eaten, the tasks of clearing the table, putting leftovers away, changing the tablecloth and doing the dishes are shared among other family members. It's true that many hands make light work and when we're catering for at least eight people each meal, it's more fun when we share the workload.

Happy Cooking!

Great gift ideas to encourage young cooks include:
Wooden Spoon
Rolling Pin
All Purpose Full Apron
All Purpose Half Apron