Natural Dyed Eggs

Naturally Dyed Eggs

This is the time of year that we think about spring celebrations, and that may of course include dyed eggs! We love to decorate our tables and baskets, reminding us of spring traditions of old. We have been used to buying those cute packages of dye with bunnies on them, questioning whether there is an alternative natural way to create your own colors right from your pantry! Well, of course there is! The answer may be well known to many of you that garden or homestead, or those that listened to grandma like I did years ago, following those very old natural traditions.

Using what you have is always the best place to start with any project. So, let’s get to pantry gathering, and you can get started creating your own dyes from what you already have. There are many ways to get colors, I am showing the basics that I learned as a child. Feel free to experiment with alternative items that you may have available – that are chemical free.

RED DYE

2 large red beets, diced
3 C water
2T white vinegar
Boil the beets for about 12-15 minutes until the water reduces to about 2 C. Drain and save the liquid into a container with a cover and let cool. Stir in the vinegar, add the hard boiled eggs covering the eggs completely and refrigerate for 24 hours. Remove and let dry.

ORANGE DYE

Skins of 7 yellow onions
2T white vinegar
Water
In a pot, add the onion skins with enough water to cover the skins. Boil for 15-20 minutes until the water is reduced to about 2 cups. Drain and save the liquid into a container with a cover and let cool. Stir in the vinegar, add the hard boiled eggs covering the eggs completely and refrigerate for 24 hours. Remove and let dry.

YELLOW
2T ground Turmeric
2C water
2T white vinegar
Boil water, add turmeric and stir constantly for 5 minutes. Cool mixture, add the vinegar, eggs and refrigerate for 24 hours. Remove and dry.

GREEN DYE
3C fresh spinach
3C water
2T white vinegar
Boil spinach for 15-20 minutes. Remove the spinach and blend in a food processor until liquified. Reduce the water to 2C, stir in the liquid spinach, cool, add the vinegar, then the eggs. Cover 24 hours in the refrigerator, occasionally moving the eggs, remove and dry.

Other ideas for green that you can use are: Yellow delicious apple skins Parsley Green tea (3 teabags + 1T matcha) Spinach leaves + grass (4C0

BLUE DYE
½ head of purple cabbage, cut onto chunks
3C water
2T white vinegar
Boil the cut cabbage in water for 20 minutes. Strain, removing the cabbage. Reduce water to 2C, cool, add vinegar and eggs. Refrigerate 24 hours, remove eggs and dry.

PURPLE/GRAY
15 hibiscus tea bags
2C water
2T white vinegar
Boil water, steep teabags 30 minutes. Remove teabags and cool. Add vinegar and eggs, cover and refrigerate 24 hours. Remove eggs and dry.

Brown DYE
Brown dye can be made with Black Tea, dill seed (2T), coffee (1qt strong)

Have fun and be resourceful. Using what you have in your kitchen pantry can be an exciting way to create different color palettes for your dyes.

Happy Spring,

Katie Namet
ThePotagerGardener.com