It is almost NaPoWriMo time again.. and this is I believe, my third time participating in it (or is it the fourth?). Anyways, before we begin diving into a whole month of writing poetry, today, NaPoWriMo has a challenge prompt for early birds. Write a poem that plays with the idea of a “fun fact.” Your fact could actually be fun – or the whole point could be that it’s not fun. So here I go springing into April with colorful fun facts for you…

And why this topic? Well, apparently March 31st observes National Crayon Day, and since I do enjoy looking at these wacky holidays, this is my way of celebrating them!

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Colorful Fun Facts

Clue the Blues
Did you know?
A box of eight
sold for just five.^[1]
(pennies, I mean)
And if still keen
I will not deprive
Not make you wait..
The color blue we don’t hate^[8]
Maybe reminds of days we thrive(d)
We love periwinkle and aquamarine
& other blueish shades over red and green..
So much so that “bluetiful” archived^[9]
“dandelion” yellow to its sad fate…
One last fact that is worth its weight,
well, duh, in blue..The road to revive
blue leftolas ends with Big Blue in Easton.^[5]
~Vidya @ LadyInReadWrites

Few More Colorful Fun Facts For You & More On Those Above

1. Edwin Binney and C.Harold Smith introduced the first box of eight Crayola crayons in 1903, and sold them for a nickel each. Also interesting to note is that it included the same colors available in the eight-count box today: red, blue, yellow, green, violet, orange, black and brown(source)
2. The Crayola name, coined by Edwin Binney’s wife Alice, comes from “craie,” the French word for chalk, and “ola,” from “oleaginous.”
3. Mr. Rogers poured the 100 billionth Crayola crayon, and the color of this crayon? “Blue ribbon”!
4. The first crayons were made by combining charcoal and oil, and over time, powdered colored pigments replaced charcoal to produce crayons of different colors.
5. Big Blue, the world’s largest crayon, was made from 123,000 leftover blue crayons – leftolas – collected from kids around the nation. It weighs 1,500 pounds and is 16 feet long! Talk about being Big!!
6. The smell of crayons was ranked at #18 according to a study done by Yale University a few years ago, beating out cheese and bleach at #s 19 and 20!!
7. There have been over 400 colors with the Crayola label since 1903. However, today there are a 120 Crayola crayon colors, and you can explore the Crayola Color Chart here.
8. With all these colors, it was obvious Crayola was curious which ones people liked the most. A 1993 survey placed blue at the top followed by red, violet, green, carnation pink, black, turquoise blue, blue green, periwinkle and magenta. Another survey done in 2000 again showed blue reigning at the top spot with six other shades of blue finishing in the Top 10 including cerulean, midnight blue, aquamarine, periwinkle, denim and blizzard blue.  Purple heart, caribbean green and cerise rounded out the top ten.
9. In 2017, another blue joined the ranks – it was “bluetiful” – that is the name which was picked from over 90,000 submissions requested by Crayola. This hue of blue was inspired by a new pigment called YinMn, discovered by scientists at Oregon State University. It replaced the color ‘Dandelion’
10. Crayola crayons begin to melt at 105 degrees F and have a melting point between 120 – 147 degrees Fahrenheit. The differences in density and amount of pigment in the crayons accounts for the range in the melting point.

Source: Crayola.com, Mentalfloss, Wikipedia, among others

Fun Reads and More For Crayon Day

The Books

The Day The Crayons Quit

I totally agree with the words in the description. This is a totally fun book that kids (and adults too) will want to read over and over again. And the duo that brought this book has now created a series of books about these delightful crayons – and each one is a sweet yet riotous read!!

The Last Two Crayons

I loved this picture book that celebrates brown. While brown certainly doesn’t appear in any list of favorite colors, and yellow is my personal favorite, I do have a soft corner for brown – for the color of the earth in various tones, from that lighter paler shade in the sand to the rich shades of clay. And of course, for the color of the skin I am born in!

The Last Two Crayons is a beautiful, sweet story that warms your heart in so many ways. Subtle yet powerful messages of self-acceptance, friendship, family, acceptance, and self love all make this book an amazing affirmation in itself.

The Life of a Crayon

Do you want to have those heartstrings tugged? Just a little? Then this book is for you. Told through the voice of a green crayon in the box of crayons a little girl gets, we watch as the girl, and the crayon, grow older together. A sweet sweet read that you will be sure to enjoy. I know I did… (sniffle…)

The Crayon Man

The book tells the story of Binney (and Smith too) who made the crayons that are known today as Crayola. Natascha Biebow’s narrative takes readers from the very beginning, when this crayon was just a thought borne out of need, to that first box of Crayola, and to the many colorful crayons made today. We see the brainstorming, the experimentation, the challenges, and more on this path.

Stunningly beautiful illustrations from Steven Salerno made me look at the book many times over (and be inspired, just a little, to create something beautiful myself)

It is a wonderful read:

• as a biography of a passionate and curious inventer who listened to others;
• a way to learn the process of creating a new product from ideation to getting it to its end users,
• for its excellent backmatter
• and so much more.

Extra: Here is a reader’s guide to use with the book (from the publishers)

The Rest

• 13 Ways to Celebrate the Pencil: Pointed and Perfect

And Now, the End of This Post

Dear readers, which of these colorful fun facts appealed to you the most? Are you planning to participate in any of the month-long challenges April brings? I am taking part in a few, including BlogChatterA2Z, Blogging from A-to-Z April Challenge, NaPoWriMo, and the Ultimate Blog Challenge. If you want to join in on the fun with us, it is still not late..