Do-It-Yourself Egg Dyes

Store-bought egg decorating kits work well and are useful if only for the cups and the holder. But you can also make your own dyes from food coloring, vinegar and hot water. Because food coloring comes in so many wonderful colors, making your own dye gives you endless options.

You'll Need:
Plastic cups or other disposable containers
Distilled white vinegar
Gel food coloring
Spoon
Hot water
Wire rack
Wax paper
Hard-boiled or blown-out eggs

What to Do:
Pour 2 teaspoons vinegar into container. Add food coloring (10 to 20 drops, more for vibrant colors, less for pastels) and stir with a spoon. Slowly pour in ¾ cup hot water while stirring constantly. Stir until coloring is fully dissolved. Slip a clean, hard-boiled egg into the dye bath and let sit for about 5 minutes (more for darker color, less for lighter). Remove egg with spoon or egg holder and rest on a wire rack set over wax paper.

Tips: The gel food coloring from the supermarket usually has a chart for mixing colors on the package. This is useful for such colors as lime green, pink, orange or light brown. If you purchase your coloring at a craft store, no need to mix, as they often carry every imaginable color.

From Reader's Digest

 

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