di_the_huntress
Dyeing Easter Eggs
This is how it's done:
Eggs, hard-boiled and at room temperature. Note: These eggs are not meant to be eaten. Hard-boiled is easier to work with, and eventually become hollow, since the shell is porous. Store in a cardboard and not a styrofoam container. We have eggs from the Carter Administration!
Real egg dyes. I get them on-line from Hearthsong. Prepare as directed. Most need white vinegar.
Beeswax: This lasts for a long time. I got these on Hearthsong, but I think you can also get blocks of beeswax in a drug store/pharmacy.
Implements; We're used to working with dressmaker pins (larger head, so holds more melted wax) stuck in a kitchen match with the igniting part broken off. Commercial instruments also shown. We find they don't work as well for us.
Asbestos pads or other to put over the flame (gas stove used here). Turn it low and place beeswax in a jar lid (I prefer Hellman's mayonnaise) so that it melts. The wax, of course, has to be melted before it's applied. Asbestos pads are also used for later removing the wax from the eggs. Warm a cloth to rub off the wax.
Cloths for blotting off an egg after you've dipped it in one color and then want to put it in another.
Simply stated: Whatever design you draw on the wax stays. So start with white, then another light color and another. If you are very exuberant, your egg will have multicolor designs against a deep purple or black background. I usually limit myself to three colors..
Dyeing Easter Eggs
This is how it's done:
Eggs, hard-boiled and at room temperature. Note: These eggs are not meant to be eaten. Hard-boiled is easier to work with, and eventually become hollow, since the shell is porous. Store in a cardboard and not a styrofoam container. We have eggs from the Carter Administration!
Real egg dyes. I get them on-line from Hearthsong. Prepare as directed. Most need white vinegar.
Beeswax: This lasts for a long time. I got these on Hearthsong, but I think you can also get blocks of beeswax in a drug store/pharmacy.
Implements; We're used to working with dressmaker pins (larger head, so holds more melted wax) stuck in a kitchen match with the igniting part broken off. Commercial instruments also shown. We find they don't work as well for us.
Asbestos pads or other to put over the flame (gas stove used here). Turn it low and place beeswax in a jar lid (I prefer Hellman's mayonnaise) so that it melts. The wax, of course, has to be melted before it's applied. Asbestos pads are also used for later removing the wax from the eggs. Warm a cloth to rub off the wax.
Cloths for blotting off an egg after you've dipped it in one color and then want to put it in another.
Simply stated: Whatever design you draw on the wax stays. So start with white, then another light color and another. If you are very exuberant, your egg will have multicolor designs against a deep purple or black background. I usually limit myself to three colors..