Blue-gray, lilac, blue eggs for Easter. Coloring Hibiscus Tea

One of the popular natural food colors that many housewives use when painting eggs for Easter is the infusion of hibiscus (hibiscus, or Sudanese rose). This tea, beloved by many, is a healthy drink that pleases with its ruby color, pleasant sour fresh taste and bright aroma. It is also a safe, inexpensive and beautiful ingredient for producing gray-blue dye.

Getting ready to paint

Before painting eggs from the refrigerator, leave them on the table for a while or warm them to room temperature by immersing them in warm water. This will protect the shell from cracking during sudden temperature changes.
It is better to boil eggs in salted water, then protein will not leak if the shell is still cracked.
The shell must be degreased with vinegar, alcohol, or simply thoroughly washed with soap and water.

Detailed recipe for painting

Despite the saturated garnet color of the decoction, the staining result is surprising - the dye acquires a blue, gray or even a deep dark blue hue (depending on the exposure time). And all because because the groups of acids contained in the infusion interact with calcium carbonate, which is present in the shell. Many housewives recommend adding vinegar to a liquid with a natural dye to enhance color, but in this case it makes no sense.

We will need:

white chicken eggs;
salt - 1 teaspoon;
hibiscus - 30 grams;
water - 1 liter.

Painting process:

To color the eggs of Hibiscus, first cook them hard-boiled in the traditional way - for 10-15 minutes. Remove from heat, fill with cold water (thanks to this, the eggs will be better cleaned). Boil in salted water.
Brew tea: pour hibiscus leaves into a pan and pour boiling water over it. The drink should be infused for 15-20 minutes. The broth can be filtered using a strainer, but this is not necessary.
Gently spoon the eggs for 2-3 minutes into the coloring solution so that the liquid completely covers the future paint. Remove the egg and let it dry by patting it with a tissue or paper towel, but not wiping it. So the pigment will lie down more actively.

To get a richer and deeper shade, repeat the procedure - dip the egg in the solution again for 2-3 minutes. Dry again with a paper towel. These manipulations can be repeated until the desired shade is obtained. After 8-10 times, you can achieve a fashionable color "Niagara".

To make the dyes festive and shiny, they should be wiped with a cloth dampened in vegetable oil or a cotton pad.

After some time, the color of the eggs will change from bright purple to blue-turquoise. If you leave them in the infusion for 10-15 minutes, rather than staining them in stages, they will turn gray, and the stronger the broth, the more saturated the blue will be the final shade.

To get a marble egg, leave it in tea for 4–5 hours. The shell will be covered with a gray film that should not be washed off - you need to wait until it dries completely. Such paints are very effective as a gift for Easter and decoration of the festive table.