An Easter repost to get your creative juices flowing…
Dye Easter Eggs with Onion Skins.
Aren’t they beautiful?
Materials Needed:
- Eggs
- String or Rubber bands
- Onion skins from yellow onions, the darker the better!
- Small towels or rags. {I used cut up old white t-shirt pieces about 5″ square. They are much easier to work with when wrapping around the eggs.}
*Note: If you don’t happen to have many onions laying around your house, you can do what I did…call up your local grocery store and kindly ask the produce person if they wouldn’t mind setting aside a small box for you after they have sorted through them.
STEP 1: Take one of your eggs and cover it with the onion skin {the larger pieces of onion skin work best!}
STEP 2: Place a second layer of onion skins around the first layer.
STEP 3: Wrap a rag around the covered egg and tie a string around the wrappings {just like a little present!} Continue this process until each egg is individually wrapped. You can use rubber bands instead of string, just don’t let them get too tight.
STEP 4: Fill a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Use a large spoon or spatula and carefully place each egg in the pot.
STEP 6: When the eggs are done, fill a large bowl with cold water and carefully place each egg in the bowl to cool.
You will notice that the water in the pot will have turned to a beautiful amber color. You can use this water to dye more eggs if you wish.
STEP 7: After the eggs have cooled enough to touch them, you can start to unwrap! This is the funnest part! Each egg will turn out to be a little different and beautiful!
And you’re done! Don’t forget to take picture of your beautiful eggs!
Let’s get to know a little bit about Andrea!
“I have always had a great passion for art and design. Recently, I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Interior Design from Brigham Young University-Idaho. My full time mom/housewife career has allowed me to not only find inventive ways to put my design degree to use, but has enabled me to find a new love for culinary arts. Being able to photograph personal home decor projects, special occasions, and favorite recipes has helped me bring a bit of excitement and artistic flare to my blog: Strawberry-Chic! I would love if you would stop by for a visit!
{Sharing this post at these great parties!}
Alison says
These are so beautiful!
Shelley says
this is my favorite way i’ve seen to dye eggs. so so pretty.
Nesleirbag says
I have heard of doing this, so it’s fun to see the step by step process. They turn out so rustic-looking and pretty – a novel change from the bright colors. Thanks for a fun post.
Peggy says
What a great idea! So much simpler than the way we used to do them with red onion skins… and now I can send unique hard boiled eggs in school lunches!
kelly munns says
such a great idea. do they have any sort of an onion taste when you eat them??
Andrea @ Strawberry-Chic says
Don’t worry, the eggs won’t have an onion taste after you’ve dyed them. They taste the same as regular hardboiled eggs, they just look prettier!
Caley says
If I made these, I probably wouldn’t want to crack them and eat them…they look like a piece of art!
Emily @ ReMarkable Home says
These are so pretty! Reminds me we did natural egg dyes last year. The colors were so pretty but it was really alot of work. Some of the eggs did taste a little funny but I can’t remember which ones. We used berries, onions, teas, herbs, etc.
Kris says
This an old method of dying eggs passed through generations in our family. It’s the healthiest way also because you aren’t using any chemicals. What we do tho is get all the kids to go outside and collect the most beautiful leaves that the can find. The leaves are pressed against the egg, put into a stocking and tied very tight so that the leaf can’t move. Once you’ve completed every egg you place them in a pot filled with water and onion skins. It works fabulous. You don’t need to tie onion skins around the egg. Once done you will be left with dyed eggs and most beautiful patterns of leaves.
Mindy says
Kris, we do the same thing in our family. However, in addition to different leaves we also use different flowers and weeds. They can make for some grogeous tourquise colors, yellows, and pinks even. We dont wrap our eggs in any kind of cloth and they turn out wonderfully. We also use the long greens from green onions to help hold the stuff on the eggs.
If you live in Southern Utah there are plants that have what they call “red roots” in the area. We also do a pot of eggs using these to make amazing deep red and purple eggs the same way.
Grammy says
Have done these for years! Absolutely my favorite. I save plastic netting that onions or other veggies come in and use that to wrap the skin covered eggs. Twist the ends and fasten with twist ties or wrap with rubber bands. Also rub the finished egg w. a little veg oil to bring the the luster. Look just like a fine marble egg.
Monica says
These are gorgeous!!!
Stacie Dale says
Have to say I like a traditionally colored Easter egg better. It’s a neat, all-natural idea, but I don’t love the result for all the extra work.
Jen @ Domesticated Nomad says
I tried my hand at Onion Skin dyed eggs this year as well. Only I also sprinkled rice in the layers of onion skins and it created a beautiful mottled effect. Then I rubbed them with a little bit of vegetable oil and it gave them a pretty shine. If you would like to check it out here’s the post: http://domesticatednomad.blogspot.com/2011/04/cant-forget-eggs.html
Maysem says
Memories:) My mom used to do that for me and my siblings when we were kids…but she didn’t go through the same steps. She would just throw the onion skins in the water…but I can’t remember if it was before adding the eggs or at the same time.
Marijke says
Beautiful! But where I live our eggs aren’t white, they are brown. Silly chickens I tell you!
Jennifer says
I was thinking the same thing… our local chickens produce brown, blue and greenish toned eggs. The onion dyed ones are just stunning though! I might have to try with store bought eggs! =)
lacyquilter says
I just boiled the eggs in the pot with loose onion skins – no wrapping or tying. My eggs came out looking like dark chocolate eggs – very cool.
Bryndi says
These are beautiful!
Ashley says
I have purchased eggs that look just like these & were told they were dyed with onion skins. The only thing is mine are for decorative use only. When you shake them you can hear the yolk inside. Feels like a little ball inside. Do you know how to acheive this effect? There is now hole in the egg & I am stumped as to how you do this without an odor. One has broken and it really stinks. Thanks for any help you can give me.
B says
I’ve done traditional Ukrainian eggs for years and I can tell you that to achieve this you don’t have to do anything but display or pack the finished eggs away carefully. Eggshells are porous and the air they allow in and out will dry the innards into a little ball inside which is what you hear rattling around.
EmilyM says
Would this also work with red onion skins?
Katie says
Red onion skins work too! My husband is Polish and this is what his family has always done. We just place the red onion skins in the water around the eggs while boiling. They look pretty much the same, only darker. After they cool off, we take small razors/knives and carve off the coloring into traditional Polish designs. Obviously more an adult type tradition! 🙂 Lots of fun and they look awesome when done!
Grammy007 says
My mom & Grandma did onion dyed eggs & so have I for many many years. You can wipe each dyed egg with a little veg. oil to make them shine a little! Also, you can put them in plastic open weave material (the kind onion bags are made out of, or the bags garlic comes in sometimes) and close the ends with twist ties. The bag will conform to the shape of the egg very well. I think these are so beautiful and look just like expensive marble eggs.
darlene says
verrrrry cool! i love it! definitely going to give it a try!
Barbara says
My Mother who passed away in 2002 @ the age of 88, has always done that as long as I can remember and that is a long long time ago. We died eggs with food color and she always made a batch with onion skins.