How to Decorate Easter Eggs With Elastic Bands

Supplies you can find in your desk drawer can provide ample inspiration for creative Easter eggs this spring. Decorating Easter eggs with rubber elastic bands is a snap. With a handful of rubber bands and a batch of hard-boiled eggs, you can create a colorful basket of Easter eggs.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Hard-boiled eggs
• Elastic bands
• Food coloring
• Vinegar
• Egg drying rack
• Vegetable oil

1. Make several batches of egg dye by combining several drops of food coloring with water and a small amount of white vinegar. For the best effect, you colors should range from light to dark.

2. Dip your egg in the lightest dye bath to start. Set it in an egg rack to dry completely.

3. Wrap a couple of elastic bands around the egg and dip it into the second-lightest color dye bath and return it to the egg drying rack to dry completely.

4. Repeat the process, adding a couple of elastic bands each time before dying in progressively darker dye baths. You can continue dyeing the egg until it is almost completely covered with elastic bands.

5. Remove the elastic bands once the egg has dried completely. A variegated design will be revealed.

6. Polish your egg with a small amount of vegetable oil and a soft cloth.

7. Decorate your egg with different designs by placing the elastic bands in concentric rings. You can also create a criss-cross pattern with the bands. As you add more color to the egg, a rainbow effect may be created.

8. Decorate your egg using wide and narrow width rubber bands to create a less uniform design.

9. Remove some rubber bands after each dye bath to blend the colors on your egg.

Tips & Warnings

• Create the perfect hard-boiled egg by gently simmering your eggs for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the water and eggs to come to room temperature before storing them in the refrigerator before decorating.
• You can decorate eggs with dye baths made from vegetables, as well as food coloring. Boil colorful vegetables, such as red onion skins, spinach and beets, to create vibrant colors.
• Create an inexpensive egg drying rack from an empty cereal box. Trace egg-shaped holes on the box and cut them out to create several slots for your eggs.
• Do not use caustic materials, such as paint or permanent marker, on eggs you plan to eat. These materials may seep through the shell, creating a potential poisoning hazard by contaminating the hard-boiled egg.