I wrote this VB.NET application about two years ago. It simulates drawing with a magnet and iron filings. You can save your drawings in a text file and reload it later.
I developed this application with having electromagnetics concepts in mind so actual formulas are used to calculate the speed and direction of the filings.
The first step is defining the canvas. Here you set the width and height of the canvas and also the width and number of filings.
Then you have the canvas ready for you with loaded iron filings as follows:
You can adjust the magnet strength by clicking on the circles (buttons) on the top left. Darker circle means stronget magnet. At the end you can save your awesome painting and reload it again in future. You can download the executable here.