This Easter, skip the store-bought egg-dyeing kit and experiment with natural dyes found in your own kitchen. Natural dyes provide a depth and variety of color and tone that the packaged, tablet dyes cant deliver. Plus, everyone will have an opportunity to see how everyday foods can be used to create beautiful treasures for the Easter morning egg hunt.
Instructions:
- Begin with a dozen hard-boiled eggs. Choose the materials thatyou will need to create your natural dyes. You can use fresh,frozen or canned produce. Some of the materials will need to beboiled first in order to impart color.
- Add white vinegar-two to three teaspoons per cup of dyeingliquid-to all of the dye materials to create a deeper color.
- Dip your egg into the dye and allow it to sit for at least fiveminutes. Check the egg to see if it has reached the desired color.If not, let the egg sit in the dye for more time.
- If you want to achieve a more intensely colored egg, strain thedye through a coffee filter or sturdy paper towel.
- Cover the eggs with the filtered dye and refrigerateovernight.
- Allow the eggs to dry completely in an empty egg carton or on arack. Use caution when handling the wet eggs because the dye willeasily smudge off.
- Refrigerate the eggs when you are done working with them.
You can also experiment with a variety of embellishments.
- Try drawing on the eggs with a crayon or wax pencil beforedyeing to make words or designs.
- To create a textured look, dab wet eggs with a sponge orcloth.
- Cover egg with rubber bands to make a tie-dyed effect.
- Smash raspberries directly onto the egg to create a mottledfinish.
- To create a subtle sheen, rub the dry egg with cookingoil.
(Note: Wear smocks or aprons for this project to avoidstaining your clothes andbe prepared for some odors. Also, Iwouldn’t recommend eating hard-boiled eggs that have been dyedusing this method because they may have taken on the flavor of thematerials used in the dye. Beet-flavored eggs? Yikes.)
Materials:
- Plain white hard-boiled eggs
- white vinegar
- a selection of natural dyes
- pots for boiling
- bowls to hold dyes
- slotted spoons.
- Optional: crayons or wax pencils, rubber bands, freshraspberries, sponge, oil.
