Craft

Colourful Easter Eggs

the cheap and easy way….

EASTER IS APPROACHING SO IT’S THE PERFECT TIME OF YEAR TO MAKE THESE GORGEOUS DYED EGGS, SIMPLY CREATED WITH INGREDIENTS FOUND IN THE KITCHEN CUPBOARD

Most homes will have everything you need in the kitchen, and if you don’t, they are readily available at your local food store. This egg dying method works equally well on broken pieces of shell, blown eggs and hard-boiled eggs. You can also use it to colour both white and brown shelled eggs.

Materials

− Food colouring (any type) − Vinegar (any kind and optional – see tips below) − Warm water − Egg Shells. I used gel food colouring and apple cider vinegar, which I have in my cupboard, plus a mix of white and brown shell pieces. This craft is a food-safe craft due to the materials used, so it is also perfect for dyeing hard-boiled eggs. And if you want whole empty eggshells, there is a guide showing you how to blow an egg on my website.

Tips for dyeing eggs with food colouring

Food colouring has a habit of staining everything it comes in contact with. I used glass bowls to mix up my egg dye and protected my surfaces well. I also used disposable gloves to avoid staining my hands. The vinegar reacts with the eggshell, which in turn makes it easier for the colour to adhere. If you don’t use vinegar, the colours you achieve will be paler. This is the method we used on this project.

Steps

1. Mix two teaspoons of vinegar per litre of hand-hot water and use to fill your bowls. Add a dollop of food colouring gel (or 10-15 drops of liquid colouring) and stir to mix. 2. Submerge your eggs in the solution and leave to sit for a few minutes. The longer you leave your eggshells in the dye bath, the more colour they will take up. You might want to experiment here a bit, set different timers and work out the strength you want. So if you are hoping for very pale dyed eggs, check after just a couple of minutes. 3. Remove the coloured eggs from the dye and set them on some kitchen towel to dry. Now sit back and admire your beautiful eggs!

By Sarah Whiting

Sarah is the author of craftinvaders.co.uk where she blogs about her original craft tutorials, recipes, foraging, and developing wellbeing through being creative, spending time outdoors and connecting with nature