All Natural Coloring: Instead of using the traditional color kit this year, try these natural ingredients to give your eggs a vibrant hue. Best of all, you'll find most of these items in your pantry or refrigerator.
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
Purple: 4 cups cranberries, 4 cups cranberry juice, 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
There are two approaches to cooking the eggs and the dyes. The first is to hard-cook the eggs and let them cool. (Watch the video on how to cook perfectly-done eggs.). 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
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