if you are getting ready to dye eggs in celebration of Easter, i suggest you use natural ingredients instead of the chemicals used in most dye kits. Herbs and spices are great for dying eggs and they come in a variety of colors- from soft purple shades of hibiscus to the rich gold tones of turmeric. When you are dying with nature it is a little more unpredictable because you don't know exactly what nature is going to produce at that moment. But this is part of the fun.
Ingredients:
4 cups of water
dyestuff (2-4 tbsps ground herbs and spices or 1 cup of whole or cut or sifted)
1 tbsp mordant (white vinegar or cream of tartar- helps colors penetrate the shell)
4-6 eggs, washed to remove any coating.
hot bath directions:
bring water, dyestuff, and mordant to a boil. Add eggs and reduce heat to a simmer. cook for about 15 minutes, remove from heat, cover and let sit another 15 minutes or more, until desired color. (the longer you leave the eggs in the dye, the deeper the color.) Remove eggs, gently rinse in lukewarm water, and let air dry.
Here are some ideas for colors:
reddish blue/ lavender: hibiscus flowers
deep gold: tumeric root powder
pale yellow: safflower petals
Pale orange: curry powder
reddish brown: chili powder
orange: paprika
soft brown: dill seed
tannish yellow: yarrow
You can also use: beet juice or beet powder, berries, coffee, juice, lemon and orange peels, red cabbage leaves, tea and onion
Recipe for dying eggs using natural ingredients from Frontier.
Have fun!!
kelly
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