DIY: Dye Easter Eggs Naturally

Reader Contribution by Samantha Collins
Published on April 15, 2011
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This Easter skip the store-bought, chemically processed Easter egg dyes and opt for a more natural way to make colorful eggs with your family.

According to the article Attention Easter Bunny, Serve Safe Eggs from Kirotv.com, most Easter egg dyes contain baking soda that can become harmful to children if eaten in big amounts. And, let’s face it, I’m sure we were all a bit careless as children when handling dyed Easter eggs.

Avoid being overexposed to various chemicals this Easter use these natural, and healthier, ways of dyeing your eggs with these eco-friendly dyeing tips from The Herb Companion.  Don’t worry; you get still get your bright, colorful eggs with these natural dyes:

Gold: Handful of yellow onion skins

Yellow: 2 tablespoons turmeric, 1/2 cup dried marigolds, goldenrod, or cosmos, or a handful of carrot tops

Green: Handful of coltsfoot

Blue: Handful of woad or 2 cups chopped red cabbage

Pink: 2 cups chopped beets or 12-ounce bag of cranberries for a lighter pink

Purple: 1 cup frozen blueberries

Brown: 2 tablespoons coffee grounds or 4 black tea bags

Herbs and food dyes are a healthier alternative to chemically processed dyes.
Photo by protoflux/Courtesy Flickr

For a more detailed description about how to properly dye hard-boiled Easter eggs, check out our article Natural Easter Egg Dyes.

What are your favorite Easter memories? How do you and your family decorate Easter eggs?

Soon enough, the fun of Easter festivities will come to an end and most Easter-celebrating household will have a plethora of decorated eggs left to eat or eventually throw away. (My family probably ends up throwing away more than enough eggs after Easter!) Hard-boiled eggs, if still shelled, should be eaten within a week to prevent food-born illness from occurring. This provides the perfect opportunity to create new egg dishes.

Discover great ways to use up those pretty eggs with these egg-tastic recipes:
• Egg Salad with Nasturtiums and Chives
• Lucie’s Deviled Eggs
• Deviled Eggs with Dill

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