Homemade Natural Easter Egg Dye for Coloring Boiled Eggs

Mar 21, 2011
Bridget Coila

Natural Easter Egg Dye Colors - timlewisnm

Coloring Easter eggs with natural dyes made from foods can be a healthy and fun alternative to using store-bought dyes.

Synthetic food dyes may be made from coal tar, petroleum derivatives or even the crushed bodies of dead insects. But even if you aren’t interested in putting those things in your or your child’s mouth, you need not give up on the fun of dyeing Easter eggs with your kids. There are plenty of natural, healthy alternatives you can use to color Easter eggs, many of which result in prettier creations than synthetic colors do.

Coloring Easter Eggs While Boiling

Boiling eggs with a strongly colored substance is one of the easiest and most effective ways to dye Easter eggs. To create yellow Easter eggs, try boiling the eggs with turmeric, cumin, celery seed, lemon peel, dandelion flowers or carrot tops. The skins of yellow onions or chili powder in water can create an orange-colored Easter egg, while red onion peels create a pink, violet or red tint. Pomegranate juice is another option for a red dye.

Boiling eggs with apple peel can turn them a light green, while a stronger green color can be achieved with spinach, clover leaves or parsley. Boiling eggs with black walnut shells or acorns can turn them brown and red cabbage leaves can leave a blue tint. Try boiling leaves of red cabbage with eggs to create a nice blue color. Sometimes it is more effective to leave the eggs to cool in the liquid after boiling to allow the color to develop fully.

Natural Dyes for Pre-Boiled Easter Eggs

Many colors come out better when dyed after the eggs are already boiled. The juices from mashed beets, cranberries, raspberries, cherries or red grapes can give boiled eggs a pink or reddish color. Diluted grape juice leaves eggs lavender-colored and at full-strength you can use it to get a blue-purple color. Canned blueberries can create blue eggs and pomegranate juice can be used to get red eggs. Black tea or coffee turns eggs brown.

Easter Egg Dyeing Tips

Before coloring eggs, dip them in a solution of half white vinegar and half water to remove the natural protective coating that can hamper dye absorption. Rinse in water and air dry before coloring to get rid of the vinegar. The longer you leave the egg in the dye, the deeper the color will become. You can remove the egg every few minutes if you aren’t sure how long you want to soak it and return it to the dye if it isn’t quite the color you were imagining yet. Feel free to mix natural dyes as well, such as combining turmeric and red cabbage to get a green-colored egg. To make eggs shiny after dyeing, wait until they are dry and then rub a coat of vegetable oil over the eggs.

It may take some experimentation to get the precise colors you are looking for, but exploring different foods and combinations as dye sources is part of the fun. Creating Easter eggs using healthy natural dyes instead of packaged synthetic dyes helps teach children about living sustainably while creating fun holiday memories.

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Bridget Coila - I'm a cell and molecular biologist, freelance writer and photographer currently living in Beijing, China. I'm fascinated by science, ...