How to Dye Pasta for Art Projects

Pasta is versatile in the early childhood classroom, finding its place in practical life and art. Draw children to the activities by changing the colors based on theme or season. Please note that this is not a method for coloring pasta to eat, as this one uses rubbing alcohol. This is how you can dye pasta for art projects.

Materials needed to dye pasta:

**Small glass bowls

**Food coloring

**Rubbing alcohol

**Variety of pasta

**Slotted spoon

**Paper towels or paper plates

How to dye pasta:

1. Put a few drops of food coloring into a small glass bowl. Pasta is naturally yellow in color, so you will require less color when dyeing pasta yellow, green, or orange. For red, purple, and blue, more color is required. For a better purple, use more blue than red.

2. Fill the bowl about two-thirds of the way with rubbing alcohol.

3. Add the pasta you wish to color. Start with larger types of pasta, such as rigatoni. As the day progresses, rubbing alcohol evaporates quickly. When this happens, use up the dredges with smaller pasta, or even rice.

4. Let the pasta soak. For light alterations in color, and those that are closest to yellow, soak the pasta for a minimum of fifteen minutes to half an hour. For more intense color, especially for darker colors, soak the pasta for several hours, or even overnight.

5. Remove pasta with a slotted spoon, letting the excess run back into the bowl. Either rinse the spoon between colors, or start with lighter colors and make your way toward the darker colors.

6. Dry the pasta in a single layer on paper plates, or regular plates lined with paper towel. The rubbing alcohol will evaporate quickly, so the pasta should be ready within an hour.

6. Add the next round of pasta and begin the soaking process again. The colored rubbing alcohol can be reused. Mix colors when they start to get low, for other color combinations.

Uses for colored pasta:

**Use round pastas for stringing bracelets and necklaces.

**Glue pasta as part of a collage.

**Use pasta in practical life activities, such as spooning and pouring.

**NEVER eat pasta that has been dyed using rubbing alcohol.