Go Green at Easter: Eco Friendly Egg Decorating

Stay with the eco-friendly green trends this Easter holiday by skipping the processed Easter egg dyes and going with more environmentally safe options. Your kids will learn a lot more about traditional dying techniques, such as those used by early pioneers and Native Americans, and the dyed eggs will be much healthier for eating after the holiday.

Also, using plants and natural dyes from your yard and homes can cut the cost of Easter egg decorating for today's tight budgets.

Start with both white and brown eggs. If possible, check your local farmer's market for natural hued eggs which will give you a broader range of colors when you dye them.

Then look around your yard and home for natural items with a reputation for staining your skin. The week before Easter save the red and yellow onion peels from dinner. Also save carrot peels, or use shredded carrots, leftover spinach or greens, and citrus peelings (from oranges, lemons and limes). Gather dandelion blossoms from the yard. Then set aside a few tablespoons of coffee and tea.

Instead of boiling the eggs first and then dying them, you will boil the eggs with the natural ingredients to achieve those bright Easter colors. Prepare a pot large enough to boil the number of eggs you want dyed each color. Place the number of eggs, water, and one of your items in the pot. Boil until the eggs are completely cooked and they should have turned a different color.

Experiment with different materials and colors of eggs to see what colors you get. To get you started:

To get orange use orange carrot peels and shreds.

For reds and pinks, use red onion peels and canned or fresh beets.

Dandelions and lemon peels work for yellow. You can also get a lighter yellow using yellow onion peels.

Lime peelings, spinach and other greens will turn the eggs green.

Blackberries and blueberries make a deep purple.

Blue flowers, like irises and violets, create blue dyes when boiled.

Coffee and tea will give you shades of grays and browns.

Experiment with different flavors of Kool-Aid as well.

Using brown eggs will give you darker colors, like deep reds, while white eggs will be more pastel Easter eggs like pink.

Use more materials in the boiling water for darker colors. For example, a teaspoon of instant coffee may not color several eggs as well as several tablespoons.

For more eco friendly egg decorating ideas, get creative with your eggs before dropping them in the boiling dye pots. Designer Easter egg kits can be expensive, and you can do all those effects with household materials.

Take crayons and make designs on the raw eggs. The wax will cause wax relief impressions where the dye won't soak into the eggshell. Use white crayons to leave the egg's natural color, or use colored crayons to add Easter colors and designs.

Wrap the eggs in small squares of thin cloth and then wrap multiple rubber bands around it. Drop the wrapped egg into the boiling dye and it will leave a tie-dye design on your Easter eggs. Using more rubber bands leaves more of the "wrinkles" on your egg's surface.

Place leaves, flower blossoms or stickers on your eggs before dying them. Secure these with the tie-dye cloth or place a section of thin stocking material (ladies pantyhose) around the shapes. Tie off each end tightly to hold the materials in place. The hose are too thin to affect the egg, but the flower, leaf, or sticker shapes will be there after dying.

Use kitchen sponges to add darker dyes over lighter dyed eggs. A stout beet dye can be sponged onto lighter eggs to leave the speckled, sponge look for your Easter eggs.