Tired of commercial dyes, want to try something without artificial colors or maybe you want to dedicate time to make your own dye and turn the process of dyeing eggs into a more fun activity for the whole family? Below you can find some alternative ideas and recipes for Easter egg dyeing that you can easily execute with simple ingredients.

How can you dye eggs alternatively?

Depending on the color you want to give to your eggs, you can use simple everyday materials that you may already have at home, and if you don't, you can definitely easily get them. They are simply edible materials, without the addition of chemicals, that guarantee a natural result. Let's see them one by one.

Try dyeing with red onion

It is now a common secret that the outer leaves of the red onion can give a dark red - towards brick - color to the eggs. The steps to achieve it are very easy and simple:

• Clean the onions and keep the outer dry leaves (you can keep the cleaned onions in a food bag in the refrigerator for the next meals you will make).
• In a pot with water, add the onion leaves and the eggs.
• Then, let them boil for 10 minutes, so that the onions release their color and the Easter eggs are dyed.
• You can keep the eggs in the pot with the colored water for a longer time (without boiling the water) to dye them better.
• After they cool down, place them on absorbent paper and once they dry, continue with the polishing process.
• With a piece of cotton or a cotton fabric dipped in olive oil, you can polish the dyed eggs one by one.

For about 40 eggs, you will need the peels from about 20 medium onions and 140g vinegar.

Boil Purple (or Red) Cabbage

The purple or red cabbage, as you like to call it, is an ingredient that, believe it or not, can give your eggs a deep or light (depending on the quantity) blue color. Let's see how:

• Rinse the cabbage well and separate its leaves.
• Then, place them in a large pot, along with vinegar and the eggs.
• Bringing slowly to a boil and boiling for 20 minutes, the natural dye substances from the cabbage will start to be released.
• Once the 20 minutes have passed, stir well with a spoon and let them come to room temperature.
• For better results, you can place the pot as it is in the refrigerator overnight and continue in the morning with the rest of the process, removal and polishing.

For about 40 eggs, you will need 1 whole cabbage and 200g vinegar.

Experiment with Aronia Berries

Aronia berries - also known as chokeberries - are known for their beneficial properties and the benefits they provide to our body. In dried form, specifically powdered aronia, can be used as a natural dye to give a pink color to Easter eggs.

• Following the steps of the basic recipe, place the eggs, vinegar, and aronia powder in a saucepan.
• If you cannot find aronia powder, you can grind the dried berries in a food processor until they turn into powder form and then use them in the recipe.
• Simmer for about 10-15 minutes and let them cool.
• Then, remove and polish the eggs.

For about 40 eggs, you will need 1-2 packages of aronia and 100g vinegar.

Utilize the beetroot juice

The beetroot is an ingredient that does not require much special treatment, as it does its job very well on its own, without any particular effort. You can add it anywhere and it will give this characteristic purple color, whether it is in the form of a vegetable, or packaged in a jar.

• Clean the beetroots, remove their leaves, and rinse well.
• You can cut the beetroots into smaller pieces with a knife, so that they release their pigments faster.
• Then, place them in a large pot, along with vinegar and eggs.
• Once it comes to a boil, let the eggs boil together with the beetroots for about 10 minutes.
• After the 10 minutes, stir well with a spoon and let them come to room temperature.
• For better results, you can place the pot as it is in the refrigerator overnight and continue the next morning with the rest of the process, removal, and polishing.

For about 40 eggs, you will need 8 medium beetroots and 200g vinegar.

Add turmeric

Another natural ingredient with many beneficial properties is turmeric. It is a spice with a characteristic yellow color that leaves its mark on any other material it comes into contact with.

• Following the steps of the basic recipe, place the eggs, vinegar, and turmeric powder in a saucepan.
• Simmer for about 10-15 minutes and set aside until they cool down.
• For better results, you can place the saucepan in the refrigerator overnight.
• Then, remove and polish the eggs.

For about 40 eggs, you will need 60g of turmeric powder and 200g of vinegar.

Add color with spinach

Spinach in any form, fresh, packaged or frozen, can give your eggs the green color you want. Let's see how:

• Rinse the spinach leaves well.
• In a saucepan, add water, spinach, vinegar and the eggs in a layer.
• Then, as the water gradually comes to a boil, simmer gently for about 20 minutes.
• Let all the ingredients cool in the water, stirring at regular intervals.
• For better results, you can place the saucepan in the refrigerator overnight and continue the next morning with the rest of the process, removal and polishing.

For about 40 eggs, you will need 1 kilo of spinach leaves and 200g vinegar.

More ideas...

Pastry colors

If you want more ideas, you can try to dye the eggs with pastry colors.

• You can easily and quickly dye the Easter eggs in any color you want.
• You can find pastry colors mainly in liquid or powder form, but also in paste or gel form.
• Even if you only find a few or the basic colors (red, yellow, blue), you can combine them and play with the quantities to create the color you want for your eggs.
• Regarding the intensity of the color, if you want the eggs to have a more vibrant color, add more color. At first, you can use a smaller quantity and then adjust it.
• After cleaning, boiling, and letting the eggs cool, as mentioned above, add water to a large cup about halfway, along with 1 teaspoon of vinegar and 8-10 drops of liquid pastry color.
• Then, using a spoon, immerse the boiled egg in the colored water and repeat for all the eggs, allowing each one to absorb the color for a few minutes.
• After removing each egg from the dye, place it on paper to dry.
• Once you complete the process and all the eggs are dry, polish them one by one with a cotton ball soaked in a little oil.

Gloves will come in handy for this recipe as well.

Napkins

Finally, another recipe for "dyeing" eggs, without paint and all that, is using napkins. You will only need Easter napkins with favorite designs, your eggs, and a brush. This is a very simple - completely natural and without glue or dyes - way to dye Easter eggs.

• Boil the eggs in the way and with the tips mentioned above.
• After the eggs have boiled and cooled down, pour into a bowl egg whites from one or two eggs, depending on the quantity of eggs you want to dye.
• Then remove the inner white part from the napkins, keeping only the outer part, with the designs.
• For each egg, cover it with a piece of the napkins and after dipping the brush in the egg whites, pass it over the napkin to "stick".
• Cut off any protruding napkin residues and pass once again with the brush to make sure the napkin is stuck to the egg.
• Continue the process for all the eggs and let them dry.

Whichever alternative you choose, don't forget to get a beautiful basket or an egg holder and decorate it with various ornaments and decorations or stick Easter stickers. Prepare, thus, the most beautiful gift for the Easter visit or decorate your Easter table.

Finally, you can still find various ideas with designs for egg dyeing and discover more recipes for Easter eggs with ready-made dye - if you don't have much time to make your own - and transform this year's Easter eggs into small masterpieces that both kids and adults will love!