School Supplies

August 2023 Amazon Picks: Top LEAD-FREE back-to-school choices to get you ready for the new school year!

August 2023 Amazon Picks: Top LEAD-FREE back-to-school choices to get you ready for the new school year!

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For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-Federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

“100% Natural” 2019 Eco-Wedge Crayons. Purple tested positive for trace levels of Arsenic. Other colors tested clean.

“100% Natural” 2019 Eco-Wedge Crayons. Purple tested positive for trace levels of Arsenic. Other colors tested clean.

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100% Natural Eco-Wedge Crayons from 2019 For the testing done on these crayons, each test was done for a minimum of 180 seconds (3 minutes) and repeated multiple times to confirm the results. One full set of results for each color crayon in this set is noted below. While high-precision XRF testing of crayons is…

This is a summary with links to all my articles with XRF toxicant testing of school supplies

This is a summary with links to all my articles with XRF toxicant testing of school supplies

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For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

Melissa & Doug Jumbo Triangular Crayons (for ages 3+): Non-detect for Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, Mercury & Antimony

Melissa & Doug Jumbo Triangular Crayons (for ages 3+): Non-detect for Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, Mercury & Antimony

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Here’s my affiliate link to this product on Amazon. Posted: Tuesday, April 21, 2020 When tested with a high-precision XRF instrument, the Melissa & Doug Jumbo Triangular Crayons (pictured above) had the readings listed below (broken out by color of crayon). All tests on each color crayon were repeated multiple times, in order to confirm…

This post is linked to all of my posts about crayons; including Crayola, Honey Sticks, Filana, and Stockmar.

This post is linked to all of my posts about crayons; including Crayola, Honey Sticks, Filana, and Stockmar.

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Introduction For each post I write, there are category keyword tabs at the top of the post. Each of those words is a link to the category, and you can get to that category overview (to see all of the posts in that category) anytime, by clicking on any of those words. I am working…

Artists Serving Artists red acrylic ruler (made in China) from Blick Art Materials: no metals detected at all! [Lead-free!]

Artists Serving Artists red acrylic ruler (made in China) from Blick Art Materials: no metals detected at all! [Lead-free!]

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Posted: Friday, March 20, 2020 Introduction: Tamara Rubin is an independent advocate for consumer goods safety, and she is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. She uses high-precision XRF testing (a…

Vintage Thermos lunchbox: Positive for Lead, Mercury, Arsenic, Cadmium — a LUNCHBOX! (Don’t let kids use this)

Vintage Thermos lunchbox: Positive for Lead, Mercury, Arsenic, Cadmium — a LUNCHBOX! (Don’t let kids use this)

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     For those new to the Lead Safe Mama website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her four sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Tamara owns and runs Lead Safe…

Lead Safe Mama’s Back-To-School Shopping Guide – Items I actually use with my family.

Lead Safe Mama’s Back-To-School Shopping Guide – Items I actually use with my family.

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Originally written and published: August 7, 2019 Hello friends! Below is a simple version of what I am calling my “Back-To-School Shopping Guide”. These recommendations are based on what I what I feel are safer choices for children to use, and what I personally buy for my own family. I may not have tested each of the…

Vintage Maxwell House Thermos: 2,034 ppm Lead, 26 Cadmium, 249 Arsenic, 42 Antimony & that’s just in the CUP!

Vintage Maxwell House Thermos: 2,034 ppm Lead, 26 Cadmium, 249 Arsenic, 42 Antimony & that’s just in the CUP!

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When tested with an XRF instrument this Thermos brand Maxwell House coffee Thermos (vintage, yard sale find!) had the following readings: Continue reading below each of the images to see the XRF reading for that specific component. Integrated red plastic cup on top (image above): Lead (Pb): 2,034 +/- 34 ppm Cadmium (Cd): 26 +/-…

Unifix Math Counting Blocks Teaching Aid from Portland Public Schools: 1330 ppm Cadmium [a known carcinogen.]

Unifix Math Counting Blocks Teaching Aid from Portland Public Schools: 1330 ppm Cadmium [a known carcinogen.]

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A school teacher with Portland Public Schools (in Oregon) anonymously gave me these small plastic snap-together UNIFIX math / teaching aid blocks to test.  She initially had a concern that they might contain something toxic and unsafe for children primarily because of how they smell. Here’s an Amazon link to see this product in the…

“NonToxic” Organic Beeswax Crayons USA Made: 2 colors positive for trace Cadmium (a known carcinogen.)

“NonToxic” Organic Beeswax Crayons USA Made: 2 colors positive for trace Cadmium (a known carcinogen.)

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Originally Published: January 30, 2019 Updated: March 10, 2020 Introduction: Tamara Rubin is a independent advocate for consumer goods safety and she is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. She uses…

Honey Sticks beeswax crayons from New Zealand: two colors tested positive for trace Cadmium, a known carcinogen.

Honey Sticks beeswax crayons from New Zealand: two colors tested positive for trace Cadmium, a known carcinogen.

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Published: January 2, 2019 Note: Test results have been consistent for this product across multiple years of testing. November 17, 2022 Update: I am working on an article which includes my response to the November 2022 social media response from the company. I will include that link here as soon as it is published. This post is…

Wonder Woman Pencil Tin, Purchased New at Target in 2018

Wonder Woman Pencil Tin, Purchased New at Target in 2018

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I bought this for my son Charlie at the beginning of the school year. He’s a Wonder Woman fan, loves the color pink and is always drawing with colored pencils (so is in constant need of things like pencil boxes!) Because this is a new item manufactured for use by children (and sold by a…

Click to read the full XRF test results for Stockmar beeswax crayons (testing for Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, etc.)

Click to read the full XRF test results for Stockmar beeswax crayons (testing for Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, etc.)

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#AskTamara Question: Do Stockmar beeswax crayons have lead (Pb)? Answer: Below is a full summary of the specific XRF Test Results for a newly purchased set of  Stockmar Wachsmalblöcke Wax Block Beeswax Crayons  (purchased in August of 2018 off of Amazon.com) This is new-in-box product. If you are in a rush to see the results, please…

Question: Do Crayola Crayons have Lead? Answer: Yes they do, at levels considered safe for toys but unsafe for food.

Question: Do Crayola Crayons have Lead? Answer: Yes they do, at levels considered safe for toys but unsafe for food.

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Originally Published: August 28, 2018 Please note: This issue is not isolated to any specific year of crayons manufactured by Crayola nor is the issue (of heavy metal contamination) isolated to any specific type of Crayola crayons. Similar results have been found across all recent years of manufacture tested and across all types of Crayola’s crayon products. What did you find when you tested Crayola crayons for lead…