Five years ago I stumbled on this incredible way to dye Easter eggs and it blows away the ol' PAAS box version. It's not for the faint of heart. It takes a whole day (and prepping the night before - more on that later) and at least one trip to Goodwill or raiding your grandad's closet for old ties but so worth it. Old scarves, boxers, ties, tops, anything 100% silk will work and the brighter and darker the silk, the better the eggs turn out. Here’s how we did it...
Step 1: Gather 100 silk ties, blouses, scarves... For ties, you'll need to break them down meaning opening the up, taking them apart, and ironing them so they are easier to wrap around the eggs. We did this the night before and it took 2 of us a solid 3 hours but we had a pretty hefty pile of ties in front of us.
Step 2: Cut a section of silk that will fit around the raw egg (not hard boiled or blown) and wrap it as tightly as possible without crushing it then tie it using thin twine or those twisties in the veggie section at the supermarket. We learned last year that if we sprayed the silk with water from a small spray bottle we were able to lay the silk flat against the egg ensuring a better transfer of the pattern.
Step 3: Cut a square of 100% white cotton that will fit around the egg. It helps to iron the cotton too and you can reuse it over and over. Just wash it with a little bleach and it will be good to go. Wrap the cotton around the silk as tightly as possible without crushing the egg and tie it off. We also learned last year that if we sprayed the cotton with water from a small spray bottle and lay the cotton as flat as possible against the silk, that too enhances the transfer.
Step 4: Gently place eggs in one layer standing up in a pot, not too tightly packed in, cover with water plus a 1/2 inch, add 1/4 cup white vinegar. Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer and cook *gently* for 45 minutes.
Step 5: Take eggs out gently and set on paper towels or cooling racks to cool. If you're anxious to get to The Unveil as fast as possible, then run the eggs under cold water to quickly cool down. Or... you can take a break while the eggs cool, refill your cocktail and snack on a platter of home cured antipasti :) guess what we did?!
Step 6: THE UNVEIL! Unwrap the eggs and gently pat dry with a paper towel. Rub with a few drops of vegetable oil to make them shiny and watch the colors come alive. The Easter Bunny will be very impressed :)
Huge thanks to Our Best Bites for the initial inspiration! Each yeaer our eggs get more and more beautiful and we get better and better at it - or maybe we just drink so much champagne that we *think* we are getting better at it ;) you decide here, here and here. Happy Easter Everyone! :)
PS: Caveat emptor: Remember, you can't eat them as the dye from the ties can be toxic.
