I’m amazed. My daughter’s amazed. My husband’s amazed. The Crystal Effects Crayola Window Markers have seen quite a bit of use in the past few days, and not all at the hand of my four-year-old.
First, I was just looking for window markers because she really enjoyed playing with those in the gym’s child care area. Then I saw these, which is an even cooler spin on the other markers designed to write on windows–pictures seem to turn into ice right in front of you.
The only catch is, you’ll have to use them on a warm window, so they’ll get limited use in the winter. They’ll probably be dried up by then, anyway, with the amount of use they’re getting.
You may have only a few windows that are ideal to use them on, which could be another drawback. We have one window that works perfectly–it’s big, it’s right next to my office, and it’s directly in the sun in the afternoons.
When we first started trying the markers out, I was completely underwhelmed. The color was barely even there, very sheer, and just…disappointing. I was starting to regret my decision.
But then, almost as if ice was growing from one corner of the drawing all the way up and across, the images really did take on a crystallized appearance. It was as if we could watch the images freeze within seconds of drawing them. My daughter was giddy. My window…well, it used to look like a normal window. Now it’s like stained glass full of hearts, flowers, numbers, and probably a few naked people (she never draws clothes and I’m not sure why, but she makes sure that they all have belly buttons).
These markers have provided fantastic entertainment for her. She can draw right next to me while I work so I get to see all her masterpieces. Then she can wipe her drawings off with a wet paper towel and start all over again.
The colors are still light and pastel, but you can definitely see them once they’ve had time to heat up. Watching the pictures transform into something more opaque and ice-like never gets old.
Photo credit: Crayola
