have an egg-cellent holiday and happy crafting

I am experimenting with natural egg dyes this Easter. They aren't the brightest in the world, but they are colored, which as far as I am concerned is "Easter" enough. I was inspired to go "au naturel" by both a friend and a photograph I saw from Edible Manhattan. I like the colors the Paas kits have to offer, but have just embarked on an extreme health kick and thought I might as well take the healthier route. My biggest concern was that the dye would flavor the eggs, but from everything I've heard and read, I should be in the clear. Unlike the six vibrant colors of the Paas kits, I only made three; I used beets, onion skins, and blueberries. The onion skins required some boiling and I did not do anything except add the beet juice and blueberries to a jar with a little white vinegar. 

The eggs seem to like it so far.  The blueberry dye speckles the eggs more than the others, but I think it looks nice. I wish you could leave dyed eggs out for display, but they are so stinky. I love hard boiled eggs, but even I don't want our entire house to smell like them. I also did some research on boiling eggs and have been knocking it out of the park in creating perfectly yellow yolks. I have tried all types of techniques, but Martie Stew's method is tried and true. I place the eggs in a pot, cover them with water, bring the water to a boil, turn off the heat once the water is rolling, cover, and then let sit for twelve minutes. It works every time. The instant ice bath after the twelve minutes helps with easy-peeling eggshells too. Click here to read more about naturally dyeing eggs.