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My sister and I are heading to volunteer at our local library’s annual egg hunt this weekend. This got me thinking of our own Easter celebration. Can you believe Easter is just around the corner?
To save money on our Easter egg decorations I’m going au naturel. I’m skipping the fizzy tablets and using spices and other items that are already in my pantry and fridge. Bobbi wrote about Easter egg decorating a while back and said this method was more expensive, but I’ve found it to be cheaper and less wasteful.
I’m using egg dye recipes I found in Bon Appetit magazine. To keep cost down, I’m using items that would otherwise go in the trash. These are some of the items:
- Old spices (They lose their potency after a year.)
- Onion skins
- Lemon and lime rinds
- Carrot tops or peels
I’m also asking my local grocery store for veggie scraps of cabbage. Hopefully they have the purple kind. Fingers crossed. Check out the video below for more egg dyeing ideas. We’re also going to be enjoying eggs for a while till we have enough shells. I’m blowing out the raw eggs. Do you boil or blow out your eggs? What are your Easter plans?
Welcome to Bargain Babe! I’m Mara, and I’m so glad you’re here. I am an obsessive bargain hunter and penny pincher, and I am determined to live a full life without EVER paying full price.
You’re right about the spices: Paprika for red, tumeric for gold…me, when I used to dye eggs and wanted them natural I’d think about food that stained clothings…blackberries (wonderful blue hue..the Navajos used to use them to dye fabric, if I remember correctly), grape juice, wine (leftover, of course!).
I remember reading women used to boil potato skins to make a hair dye..of course it was blackish which isn’t a good color for eggs (usually) but it just goes to show how much is useful in the pantry.
If you do blow the eggs and can save one of the egg whites (by itself), whip it up a bit to make it frothy and apply it to your face (clean) with a cotton ball. Let it dry…plan on giving the process about 20 minutes…best done with a friend so you can laugh at each other as it pulls your face into a rigid mask…not sure how it really works but I’ve used it for a l-o-o-on time and it’s always toned my skin. Rinse off with cool water, use a light moisturiser after.
It’s from an old book, Natural Beauty Secrets, Deborah Rutledge..(checked, it’s still listed on Amazon)…she said if you only try one thing from the book, this is it…I agree–altho that could be where I learned about potato peels, too.
You wrote ‘onion skins’…remember both red and yellow skins work…
If you’re going to serve them to adults, you might consider Chinese Tea Eggs:
http://whatscookingamerica.net/EllenEaston/TeaInfusedEggs.htm
Have a great Easter Yazmin! (and Julia and family)
@Lynda Wow, thanks for sharing all the useful info. I’m going to check out the book and whip up some egg whites for my face. Have a great weekend!