How to Dye Easter Eggs in 7 Easy Steps

Beautifully dyed Easter eggs are a surprisingly simple DIY project—and one that can really engage your creativity. More good news: You don't have to rely on store-bought kits to get colorful Easter egg perfection. With a few key tips and tricks—and common household items—you can learn how to dye Easter eggs with Insta-worthy finish every time.

Considerations Before You Start

An important prerequisite to dyeing Easter eggs is hard-boiling them. If you're the type who only does this once a year and need a refresher, re-learn how to hard-boil eggs for Easter.

If you'd prefer to use all-natural Easter egg dyes, you probably have everything you already need in your spice rack and refrigerator to make the magic happen.

If you don't have any vinegar on hand, don't fret! You can use lemon or lime juice instead (it's the citric acid that helps), or just leave the vinegar out. Your eggs won't be as deep in color without it, but pastel is always on trend for Easter anyway! (But maybe invest in some vinegar anyway because it's super useful to have around the house.)

It's also important to remember that chicken eggs aren't the only eggs out there, and most certainly not the only eggs you can dye. If you really want to make a statement this Easter, branch out with other types of eggs like duck or quail and experiment with different sizes and designs.

And for parents with small kids—or those of us who don't have the patience to wait for the dip dye—consider some other creative Easter egg decorating ideas, many of which don't require a drop of dye.

What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

1 Tongs, egg dipper, or slotted spoon

Materials

Hard-boiled eggs (that have been cooled)

Tarp, paper towels, or newspapers

1 Bowl or cup deep enough to completely submerge an egg (per color)

1/2 cup Boiling water (per color)

1 teaspoon White vinegar (per color)

1 bottle Liquid food coloring (about 20 drops per color)

Rubber brands, waterproof tape, crayons, or wax (optional)

Stickers, washi tape, gold leaf (optional)

Instructions

How to Dye Easter Eggs

How to Dye Eggs

ERI MORITA/GETTY IMAGES

Let the eggs cool

A person's hand holding a brown egg

PENPAK NGAMSATHAIN/GETTY IMAGES

Allow your hard-boiled eggs to cool so no one gets burned while handling them.

Protect your work surface

Newspaper covered table

REAL SIMPLE

Cover your table, counter, or workspace with a tarp or several sheets of newspaper or paper towels to avoid staining.

Prep your bowls

Bowl of water

REAL SIMPLE

Make sure you have enough bowls on hand for every color of dye you want. Fill each bowl with enough hot water to completely cover your egg and add 1 teaspoon of white vinegar to each bowl.

Add food coloring

Bowl with water and green food coloring

REAL SIMPLE

For each dye color you intend to use, add about 20 drops of food coloring. The more food coloring you add, the darker the color of the egg will be. If you're not using the store-bought kit, we've got some great dye recipes for blue, green, pink, yellow, orange, and brown! And of course, you can mix and match dyes to get almost any color under the sun.

Make designs

Girl wearing a white sweater painting a yellow Easter egg with a paintbrush

PORTRA/GETTY IMAGES

To create unique patterns on the eggs, use rubber bands, wax, crayons, or waterproof tape to mark off stripes or designs where you don't want the dye to hit.

Dye the eggs

Dying easter eggs

REAL SIMPLE

Place your egg on a slotted or regular spoon and dunk, turning occasionally so both sides get color. Keep your dyed egg in the liquid for up to five minutes.

The longer you leave your egg in the dye bath, the more vivid the color will be. You can also dip only part of the egg in one color, and then switch to another color to create a multi-colored or tie-dyed effect.

Remove the eggs and air-dry

Drying egg dyed blue standing on toothpicks

REAL SIMPLE

Carefully remove each egg from the dye with a spoon and set it aside to dry either in the original egg carton or, if you want to reduce any finger marks, you can stick three toothpicks into some foamboard and rest the egg gently on top to dry. Once the eggs are dry, you can apply stickers, washi tape, gold leaf, or other decorative elements to finish off the look.

How to Store Your Easter Eggs

If you're not using your eggs right away, or need to save them for a super important event, (like an epic Easter egg hunt!) the best way to keep them fresh is to wait until your dye is fully dry and then place all your eggs in an airtight container and leave them in the fridge. Despite their pretty designs, it's important to remember that your Easter eggs are really just hardboiled eggs and they can and will go bad after a week, even when sealed up in the fridge. For more tips on storing hardboiled eggs or determining when you've got a bad egg, check out our hardboiled egg article that covers it all!