DIY: Natural Egg Dyes
Whether or not you celebrate Easter specifically, eggs are a natural symbol of Spring.
Here are some great ways to get beautiful, natural, colors with items you probably already have your kitchen!
These dyes are best left overnight, so clean out a couple of mason jars as well. Once you’ve mixed your dyes, place as many eggs as you’d like in each jar, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
The next morning, place them in their cartons to dry. It’s just as much fun discovering what transpired through the night!
Here are the ingredients for a variety of natural tones:
Yellow: 3 tablespoons turmeric, 4 cups water, 2 tablespoons white vinegar
Blue: 4 cups red cabbage, 4 cups water, 2 tablespoons white vinegar
Lime Green: 2 (10-ounce) boxes frozen chopped spinach, two cups water, 2 tablespoons white vinegar
Red/Pink: 2 cans beets, 2 tablespoons vinegar
Purple: Mash a cup of fresh or frozen blueberries with a fork in a saucepan, and add up to 3 cups of water. Bring to a simmer over low heat. Cover and cook about 20 minutes. Strain through a mesh strainer into one of your mason jars, and add 3 tablespoons of white distilled vinegar.
There are two approaches to cooking the eggs and the dyes. The first is to hard-cook the eggs and let them cool. Then bring the ingredients for the desired color to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Strain mixture and let it cool to room temperature. Place the eggs in the dye for 15 minutes.
For the most vibrant color, refrigerate the eggs in dye cups overnight. A second method is to boil the raw eggs and the ingredients for the selected dye color together. Let eggs and ingredients simmer for 15 to 30 minutes, then remove the eggs from the pan.
For a little variety try…
Rubber Band Designs: Wrap elastic bands of various widths around hard cooked eggs, then drop the eggs in food-coloring dye until the desired color is achieved. Next, remove the eggs, pat dry with paper towel and remove the rubber bands. Allow the dye to dry slightly and then drop the egg into a different color dye to create a cool tie-dyed effect.
Stickers: Place stickers on hard-cooked eggs to create perfectly-shaped polka-dot, letters, or even bunny rabbits. Choose your shape, stick it on, and then dip the egg in dye until the egg changes shades. Remove the egg from the dye and let it dry. Once it’s dry, remove the sticker and re-dip in a different color if you wish.
Happy Spring!
