Remember how much fun it was when you were young to dye your Easter eggs. The mess we made on the table was part of the fun. At our house, we wound up staining ourselves as much as the eggs. That old method of vinegar and dye was fun, but not always healthy for us.

Nowadays, there are so many different options to decorating Easter eggs. Using natural ingredients creates some unusual results in colors and patterns; you never quite know what you will get! From rubberbands and craft tissue to crayon wax, then there is the natural products. Below are a few options for decorating using only natural ingredients.

Easter Eggs Dyed With Onion Skins
Soak your onion skins in a big bowl of water. Dip small squares of cloth in water also, then wring them out so they are damp. Dip the eggs in the water; it helps the onion skins cling to them better. Wrap the onion skins around each egg. Place the onion skin wrapped egg in the middle of one of your squares of cloth. Wrap the cloth snugly around the egg so the onion skin presses tightly against it. Securely tie off the top of the cloth with a rubber band. Add each bundled-up egg to a pot of boiling water. Boil them for seven or eight minutes, until they are hard boiled. Once cooked, rinse in cold water. Unwrap the eggs. Wipe the eggs dry. Wipe with vegetable oil using a cloth or paper towel and rub the eggs. The oil gives the eggs a nice shine and seals the pores which will help keep them fresh. Viola, you have a wonderful new design.

Naturally Dyed Easter Eggs
Using a teaspoon of vinegar, add any of the following natural dyes all from household items or fruits/vegetables.

Beige to Brown: Strong Brewed Coffee
Blue: Canned Blueberries or Red Cabbage Leaves
Green-Gold: Yellow Delicious Apple Peels
Light Yellow: Orange or Lemon Peels, Carrot Tops, or Ground Cumin
Orange: Yellow Onion Skins
Pale Red: Fresh Beets Or Cranberries, Frozen Raspberries
Pale Green: Spinach Leaves
Yellow: Ground Turmeric

Fancy Crayon Easter Eggs
Boil your eggs. Then color on the Easter eggs before placing in the dye. Using crayons, color dots, swirles, lines, drawings, whatever you want to draw. The wax will prevent the dye from soaking through and will show your child's pretty picture.

Craft Tissue Dye Easter Eggs
Lay a variety of colorful tiny torn pieces of art tissue paper on a large square of plastic wrap. Lay your hard boiled egg in the middle of the tissue. Wrap the cellophane plastic wrap around the dampened egg, gently pressing the tissue papers against it. Make sure the egg is damped well. Then remove the plastic wrap and the tissue papers, then set the egg aside to dry.

Egg Drying Stands
Paper towel tubes cut into rings make great drying stands for finished eggs.

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• Part 4: The Magic Faraway Tree - The Land of Dreams - Diorama Lid
• Part 3: The Magic Faraway Tree - The Land of Dreams - Grass and Poppies Decorations
• Part 2: The Magic Faraway Tree - The Land of Dreams - The Patchwork Quilt
• Part 1: The Magic Faraway Tree - The Land of Dreams - Make A Bed