Natural Dyes in Crafting Fun
There is no denying it, these colors are natural and not as overly bright and cheery as last year's vibrant eggs. I love the colors that come from the dye tabs and food coloring. Yet, there is a simple beauty to these natural colors and to the eggs themselves. To me, they are in keeping with early spring around here in the Northeast, when the hint of color just begins to show itself in the fields and roadways.
We had these items on hand; grape juice, beet juice, paprika, and daffodils. Cooked spinach water, curry powder, and black tea are some of the other ingredient suggestions in Crafting Fun. Spinach would make a nice green.
Beet juice and white vinegar produced a nice pink color.
A few generous pinches of blueberries and a little hot water created a lovely purple.
Daffodil heads infused with hot water produce a light golden color. Use dandelion heads if you are coloring eggs with young children. Make a few dandelion bracelets too while you are at it!
Paprika powder, water, and a little white vinegar create a rusty orange.
We soaked some of the eggs on their sides for about half an hour to make a rich color. The longer the soak the deeper the color. Some colors, like beets and blueberries, saturate the egg shell quickly, within minutes.
An upside down cardboard egg carton serves as a drying and display rack. (The chocolate gray color in the front egg was soaked in grape juice and never turned purple!)
We were so surprised by the soft colors. It's always the unexpected pleasure to discover which natural color charms us the most.
A note about safety: ( Daffodil bulbs are toxic, the petals are safe to infuse for coloring eggs.. An alternative to using daffodils flowers would be to use dandelions, tumeric, or saffron to make a yellowish color. )
For those who wish to educate themselves even further about egg safety try this link
For more about edible flowers try this link and here for more natural dye options
cheers:)
