Why dye easter eggs

Even cold-weather, winter enthusiasts can't deny how intoxicating that annual, long-awaited first day of spring feels. Chirping birds! Blooming flowers! Picnic weather! Unsurprisingly, this same mentality has held true for thousands of years, dating all the way back to ancient cultures. After a long, cold season, early civilizations were similarly eager to start planting gardens and soaking up the sun's warmth.

A late or cold spring had an impact on crops, so people attempted to harness the power of the sun to bring about the resurrection of nature. And what reminds you of the sun? An egg with its bright yellow center and the life that springs from it, says Wolynetz. Many cultures throughout Europe embraced the idea that eggs had life-giving associations. The chart provides information on how much dye you'll need, plus dipping times, for a large range of colors.

The kitchen is full of natural dyes that you can use to decorate eggs. Grocery staples including red cabbage, onion skins, and coffee can be used to transform eggs into a rainbow of colors. Kids will especially love discovering all the different colors they can create using natural dyes—let them experiment using hard-boiled eggs and full bowls of cold dyes.

To make a tritoned dipped egg, dye the whole egg first in a light color , let dry for 15 minutes, and then submerge both top and bottom into a darker color leaving the center exposed.

Then, submerge egg halfway horizontally in a different shade before repeatating with the opposite side, again leaving a portion of the center uncolored.

You can also mask your eggs with lace, ribbons, rubber bands, and other materials—when you remove them, you'll reveal the unique pattern you've created. Try stacking layers of bands around the egg and removing them between layers of new dye to create a multi-faceted look.

This technique is particularly effective for creating plaid Easter eggs. Did you know you can use stickers to create striking designs? The masking technique—which can also be used with leaves , masking tape, or anything that can be adhered to the surface of the egg—could help you differentiate your eggs before applying dye.

Simply remove the "masks" after applying dye, and you'll find the design is all that's left behind. In addition to dyeing your egg, embossing powder can be used to make intricate embellishments and bring an extra layer of detail to your egg's design. The practice of decorating eggs and giving them as gifts was adopted by Christians and included in their Easter celebrations. According to Volume 5 of Donahoe's Magazine , a monthly Catholic-oriented general interest magazine that ran from to , early Christians in Mesopotamia dyed eggs red to mimic the blood that Christ shed during his crucifixion.

The church purportedly took up this tradition and it has continued ever since. King Edward I of England may also have contributed to the tradition of decorating eggs to celebrate Easter. In the 13th century, Edward I ordered eggs to be colored and decorated with gold-leaf. They were presented as Easter gifts to the rest of the royal household.

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