Egg Dyeing 101 from Martha Stewart

This year my oldest daughter will be 3.5 years old on Easter. I've gotten away the last 2 years with doing the bare minimum since she really didn't know what was going on, but now she does.

 I need to step up my game!

I've already splurged on great Easter Baskets from Pottery Barn Kids and I started collecting stuff to put in it besides candy.  I ordered the pink liner on the right in the image below for both of my girls.  At first I was going to get different liners, but then I had a vision of future arguments, so I got the same ones. 

Easter Baskets & Liners from Pottery Barn Kids

I haven't dyed eggs with my daughter yet, so it's definitely on the list of things to do this year.  I was at Party City last week and they had tons of egg coloring kits.  While I was looking at them, I realized that I haven't done this since I was a kid and really don't remember how to dye Easter eggs.


Here's some tips from Martha Stewart:

Step 1: Blow Out the Eggs
I think I'm going to skip this part and just hard boil my eggs, but here's Martha's way.  To empty a raw egg, begin by using the tip of a sharp utility knife to pierce both ends of the egg; turn the knife in one of the holes to widen it slightly. Then, poke a straightened paper clip through the larger hole to pierce and "stir" the yolk. Hold the egg, larger hole down, over a bowl, and then blow the contents out with a rubber ear syringe.

Step 2: Dye the Eggs Protect your work area with paper towels or newspaper. Mix 1 teaspoon of vinegar and 20 drops of food coloring (use more to intensify color) in 1 cup of hot water in a heatproof bowl, cup, or jar deep enough to let you submerge an egg completely.

To create different tints of a color, vary dipping times: Submerge eggs for less than 5 minutes for light colors, and leave the egg in for 10 minutes or more for deeper shades. Using tongs makes handling the eggs easy.

To make a two-color egg, dye the whole egg first in a light color, let dry for 15 minutes, and then submerge half into a darker color (this idea works best for hard-boiled eggs).

Step 3: Let the Eggs Dry A drying rack made with pins and foam board keeps things neat.

Make an Egg Drying Rack