My husband spent many of his teenage years living abroad in Germany and while living there his family picked up a lot of wonderful holiday traditions. One of my favorite traditions is to dye eggs naturally with onion skins, and now that my kids are a little older, it’s been so fun to continue this tradition with them! We love taking a walk on an (almost) spring day to collect flowers, leaves, stems and other plants that we think will yield beautiful results and then return home to make some Easter magic!
Even though we have done this for years, it still feels so special every time you take the eggs from the pot, clean them off and see the print the plant has left behind! Your family is going to love doing this. Here is how you do it:
Supplies needed to Dye Eggs Naturally with Onion Skins
Eggs
Skins of 10-12 onions
2 tbsp. Vinegar
8 c. water
Nylons
Leaves/flowers/stems
How to Dye Eggs Naturally with Onion Skins
Step 1. Place the skins in a large pot with vinegar and water. Let the mixture come to a rolling boil and then let simmer for 10 minutes.
Step 2. Cut the legs of the nylons into tubes (ours were about 1.5 inches wide).
Step 3. Wet the surface of the egg to keep the plants from moving around too much and then place the plant against the egg. Wrap a cut nylon piece around the plant and tie it off. If you need to, you can adjust how the plants lay against the egg once the nylon has them secured.
Step 4. Place the eggs in the pot and let boil for 10-12 minutes or until you have achieved your desired shade.
Step 5. Carefully remove the eggs from the pot with a large spoon. Let cool before removing the nylon.
That’s it! Now you have the most gorgeous eggs made from completely natural ingredients! This method is such a fun change of pace from the typical store-bought dyes (although we love doing those, too) and let’s you get out and explore nature as a bonus!
What are your favorite Easter traditions? We’d love to hear them!
Happy making!
ox. Liz
