Crafty Tips

Nicole from Free Bitch Crafts and Gifts here and reporting for duty!

No one likes doing things the hard way (well, at least I don't!) so I am always on the lookout for little tips to make things go a bit more smoothly. Here is a list of some of my favorite tips:

1. Free online tutorials. If you want to try something but don't really know how to go about getting started, there is a free tutorial or pattern for it. A great place to find some unique patterns and tutorials is Free Pattern. 
2. Invest in a well organized storage unit. Knowing where that specific color thread or fire polished bead can make or break a project. Don't gamble with perfection. Stay organized. Michaels often holds 50% off storage item promotions. Other great places to find cheap storage containers are Target and Walmart
3. Join Michaels Rewards program. Get exclusive sales, coupons, and crafting tips and ideas as soon as you sign up. Accumulate points to reach the Gold status to save even more. The best part? IT'S FREE!
4. Start a blog. Blogging is a great way to meet other crafters who have a wealth of information. Blogging is also a great way to make sure you stay on target with your goals and keep track of your progress. Tip Junkie has some great tips for helping you blog.
5. Invest in quality supplies. When you are starting out, the cheapest option might seem like the best idea. IT'S NOT! For a couple of bucks more, you can invest in some high quality tools that LAST. Many even come with a lifetime warranty where companies will repair or replace damaged tools due to natural wear. Now, this doesn't mean you should blow all of your savings on top of the line tools, especially if you don't feel like you're going to stick with it. Buy the tools that fit your needs, not the tools that just barely got the job done.
6. Lastly, HAVE FUN!!! If it's not fun or fulfilling, try a different method out. Don't force yourself to do something you don't like, especially if you feel lie you've bitten off more than you can chew. Take a deep breathe and analyze the situation.

This year's eggs — a little more subtle

April 7, 2012

Here are the finished eggs, after about 24 hours in their natural dye immersions as described in this post yesterday.

Just as I suspected when I had already prepared the dyes and then went back and read my own blog posts from previous years (see 2011 here and 2007 here), I should have increased the quantity of the vegetable matter because I was coloring three eggs in each mixture instead of just one.

Even so, there is something to be said for subtle coloration, too. Right?

Turmeric seems to always stain a reliable golden yellow, no matter how much (or little) you use.

The blue eggs are from red cabbage, and if you check the 2011 photo at the top of yesterday's blog post, you'll see that it can create a pretty intense blue.

The third color, new for me this year,  is that mauve, which came from grated red beet. I had hoped for a clearer pink or even a magenta, and I might have gotten a more intense color had I increased the amount of grated beet, or even if I had used a different kind of beet.

But the experimenting is really half the fun, isn't it? I mean, who wants boring predictable results? You can get that by buying plastic eggs!

So, what's next? Deviled eggs, of course! My grandmother used to color the whites after cutting the eggs in half to make deviled eggs, and since I saved the liquids from the egg dyeing, I just might be up for another experiment. Stay tuned, because of course I'll share the results here.

Natural Egg Dyeing

By Sharon Parker
ArtyDidact

2011 eggs, colored with turmeric (yellow) and red cabbage (blue)

For the last few years, I've been coloring eggs for Easter with natural dyes that use ordinary foods you may already have in your kitchen, or certainly could find easily at any grocery store. I've continued to do it after my first experimental efforts because it's just really satisfying to be able to thumb my nose at the product industries that want us to think we can't make anything in the kitchen that doesn't come out of a package.

It's really quite simple. In fact, I'm not convinced that mixing those little cups of commercial dye is any easier. It's just faster. Natural-dyed Easter eggs need to sit for several hours, and I've taken to letting them sit in the refrigerator overnight for best effect.

Grated beets, for pink eggs

I use the chart and instructions provided by Lakewinds Co-op (which you will find here). I figured out a few years ago that the amounts given in the chart are for coloring one egg, so you'll want to increase them proportionately if you're dyeing more eggs. Unfortunately, I didn't look at my notes until after I finished, so this year's batch might be a little more pastel than last year's.

The three colors I'm going for this year are saffron yellow (from turmeric), robin's egg blue (from red cabbage), and pink (from beets). I put the chopped or shredded vegetable or powdered spice in a wide-mouth quart jar, added a teaspoon of white vinegar, put in a little boiling water and stirred it, then added the already-cooked eggs and more water to cover.

And that's it. Now let 'em sit. I do stir them from time to time (a chopstick works well for this) to distribute the vegetable matter. But I don't worry about it too much, because some color variation is interesting anyway, right?

You can see how this year's eggs turned out here.

Now, if you don't like to waste food, you may wonder, what about the rest of that beet and the red cabbage?

This year's eggs, ready to set overnight

The red cabbage makes a very pretty cole slaw, especially when you add a grated carrot. Just dress it with a slightly sweet vinaigrette, because a creamy mayonnaise-based dressing will turn a little too pink!

I like to make a dressing with 2/3 or so olive oil and 1/3 balsamic vinegar, measuring a combined total of 1/4 cup, then add about 1/4 tsp kosher sea salt and a tsp. maple syrup. Maple syrup is great because it dissolves in cold liquids without congealing or tons of stirring.

Red cabbage and carrot cole slaw in the back, beet and cucumber salad to the front.

The beet I diced into small pieces and tossed with some diced cucumber in more of that light vinaigrette dressing. Yum!