Decorating Easter eggs was more than a fun holiday activity at our house, it was a full-on art project. When the kids were very little, it was as simple as using crayons and stickers to create their designs.
As they grew and needed less hands-on help, we gathered around cups of jewel-toned water made with store-bought dye kits or joined friends to make Ukrainian Easter eggs (shown below).
They’re grown now, but I can still see their faces, wide-eyed and ready to witness the transformation from egg to art.
This collection of ideas is appropriate for a wide range of ages and half of them remain edible.
1. Dyeing Eggs with Onion Skins
Dying Easter Eggs with Onion Skins
2. All-Natural Homemade Dye Using Vegetables & Spices
Old Fashioned Easter Eggs with Homemade Dyes
3. Coloring Easter Eggs with Simple Markers
Coloring Easter Eggs with Markers
4. Decorating Eggs with Watercolor Paint
Decorating Eggs with Watercolor Paint
5. Designing Eggs with Craft Paint
Bold Galaxy Easter Eggs
6. Decorating Easter Eggs with Temporary Tattoos
Decorating Eggs with Temporary Tattoos
7. Coloring Easter Eggs with Kool-Aid
Kool-Aid Easter Eggs
8. Dyeing Easter Eggs with Nail Polish
Dying Eggs with Nail Polish
9. Decorating Easter Eggs with Washi Tape
Decorating Eggs with Washi Tape
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10. Ukrainian Eggs
My friend Mary hosted a week-long Ukrainian egg decorating party at her house every year. This was such a treat for me and the kids! The challenge of intricate, layered designs was inspiring.
It’s a bit more involved to set up with the dyes, beeswax, candles, and special kistka tools, but so worth the investment and effort.
Here’s a handy tutorial => Ukrainian Easter Egg Tutorial
Note: Don’t eat eggs decorated with pysanky egg dye. Young children should be monitored very closely when using these dyes.
Ukrainian Eggs
mjskitchen says
What Fun! We didn’t have anything like this when I was a kid. Hope you had a wonderful Easter weekend.
Judy Purcell says
I hope your Easter was wonderful too, MJ!
John / Kitchen Riffs says
I’m basically a kid, so these ideas definitely appeal to me. 🙂 Fun post — thanks.
Karen (Back Road Journal) says
Well you have the egg decorating covered with all these suggestions…really nice.
rsmacaalay says
I never knew there are diffent ways of dying an egg, I thought you just paint on it and presto!
droopina says
The brand I used was a Romanian one, well known and used here.
Hehe, our eggs don’t get to sit out long. It’s our tradition to have family contests in which you have to crack as many eggs of the other family members as possible so in about 3 days all egg are gone 😀
And let me tell you another trick: don’t ever boil eggs longer than 10 min or their shells will crack and the dye will penetrate the egg; that’s the real problem. But with a little care you won’t have to worry; look at me, I’m still alive and kicking =))
I wish you and all your viewers a wonderful, peaceful and relaxing Easter!
droopina says
Hi! Wow, this is really truly a wonderful surprise! Thank you very much for your kind words. It is indeed a joy to dye Easter eggs and I must say my 2 year old kid was thrilled when he saw the colored eggs 😀
As for the safety of the colors I ensure you that this procedure is perfectly safe and we have been using it for decades now; no one was harmed during the process :))
So thank you again for this lovely article and hope to “see” you soon!
Judy says
Hi Droopina, it was a pleasure to feature your blog today, thanks for stopping by. I was wondering about the dye you use, I couldn’t tell what brand it was from the package to research it myself. Folks are becoming more aware of food dyes in their food these days and I wasn’t sure if boiling the eggs in the dye made any difference in being able to eat them–thanks for clearing that up. Personally, we have never eaten the eggs we dye at Easter because they sit out for so long ;). Hope you have a wonderful Easter!