Natural Dye Easter Eggs

Natural Egg Dye Supplies

These are the ingredients and colors used to make the natural dye Easter eggs shown here:

• Red (made with beets)
• Blue (made with red cabbage….yes, really)
• Green (made with spinach)
• Golden Brown (made with dill seeds)
• Yellow (made with turmeric)

Color Notes about Natural Egg Dyes

You will notice all ingredients create dyed water at very different rates.

Beets were very fast; maybe 10 minutes. Spinach took a very long time; a few hours. I wanted my dyes very intense so simmered them for a few hours.

Note about Red Cabbage

This almost drove me mad so I’m going to break the code on this for you now. Red cabbage DOES make the eggs a blue color.

I’ll spare you the chemistry about it (which I did research) but trust me, your egg sitting in a gorgeous purple dye WILL come out blue.

This dye took longer to set in but was very blue when I took the eggs out after soaking overnight.

Note about Spinach

This natural egg dye does make the egg green but a very earthy, bottom-of-a-pond green.

If you are looking for something that would match a leprechaun’s coat, this is not it.

Note about Turmeric

When mixed with water it becomes very silty.

I just wiped any excess off once the egg completed dying and drying.

How to Make Natural Dye Eggs – Step by Step:

Natural Egg Dye: Set Up

I began using bowls but quickly switched to quart volume Mason jars with wide mouths (wide mouth if possible, makes it easier to get the eggs in and out).

Starting Set Up:

Final and Recommended Natural Egg Dye Set Up:

The other thing is I recommend soaking these overnight for optimum color transfer.

If so, and if you plan to eat them, you’ll need to store them in the refrigerator.

Having a jar with a secure lid is the way to go (no one wants to stage a scene looking like a remake of the movie Carrie happened in your fridge were the beet dye to spill).

How to Natural Dye Easter Eggs

Instructions can be printed via the recipe card below.

There is some personal discretion with the amount of the natural dye ingredient.

Part of what you can consider is the depth of the dye color; for more dye or darker dye, use more of the item. Adjust for your needs.

Ingredient Quantities I Used:

• RED: 6 small beets (chopped into four pieces each)
• GREEN: a large bag of spinach leaves, about
• GOLDEN BROWN: 1 cup of dill seeds
• ORANGE: ½ cup of turmeric 
• BLUE: half of a small head of red cabbage (chopped into chunks)

1. In a saucepan add the item which is the source of the dye (e.g. beets, spinach, etc).
2. Add water to the pan to reach 1 inch over the top of your dye source.
3. Bring the water to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Simmer the mixture until the water is the color you would like for your dye. NOTE: The eggs will be lighter than the dye so bear this in mind when picking how dark you want it.
4. After having reached the desired color, carefully strain the dye mixture into a glass measuring cup and discard the dye source material (e.g. beets, spinach, etc).
5. Add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar per 1 cup of liquid. 
6. Allow the mixture to cool before adding eggs to avoid cracking.
7. Allow eggs to soak until desired color is achieved. I immersed mine in dye in the afternoon and put them in the fridge overnight. Not only was I surprised and delighted about the colors but they also took on some interesting textures.
8. Remove eggs from the dye and put them in an egg carton to dry.

Oiling the Natural Dye Easter Eggs

The eggs appear chalky when dried so I rubbed some canola oil on them with a paper towel which worked great (it may take multiple coats and don’t rub hard or the dye will rub off). If you will eat them remember to keep them refrigerated.