Crayon Box Saver

How many times does the box from crayons get too weak to hold crayons. It happens a lot here and the crayons end up in the big tub with the broken ones. I really love the size of the crayon box because it perfectly fits all the crayons from the box. It's not too small and not too big. My daughters desk is not very big, so I came up with an idea.
I thought I'd try something different, than handing her a pencil box when her box deteriorated. In August when I bought a 16 cent box of crayons, I thought I'd reinforce it with packing tape. It held up well and lasted longer than the crayons. This week we had several crayons break so I was going to give her another box. But, first I reinforced this one too. I could have used the other one, but then I wouldn't have pictures for here. :)

Tape top & bottom first. First I took about a 4" piece of tape for the top of the box. The box top is much smaller (2.75" x 1"). I cut the tape so that it would lay flat when I folded it over. The picture didn't come out well for this step because the tape is clear. After taping the top and bottom of box, I then took a 9" piece of tape and went around the front, sides, and back of the tape. I had the overlapping part in the back so that the front would look nicer. Because my tape is only 2" wide I had to use two 9" pieces of tape.Mark a line with a ruler & sharpie, then cut with a sharp utility knife. Do not cut back side. After taping it I cut it like a flip top box of crayons. I realized after I cut it that I should have used a ruler and sharpie.
Add a button with quilt/button thread (or 1/8" ribbon) & an upholstery needle. Leave ends long for easy tying. Place small piece of tape over ends. The button and string makes it look cute and keeps the crayons inside the box.
Tie some thread at the top with at least a 8" tail to wrap around button. To start with my string was probably 12" long. It's not easy getting inside the box, so I wanted plenty of room to tie the ends off. I added another button as can be seen in first picture at top. I thought it looked better that way. With 2 buttons you'll need an 8" tail of thread, not a 5" one. It would look like an inner office folder if you also add a circle of cardstock a little bigger than the button and use red thread. Maybe next time I will try it that way.