How To Color Easter Eggs With Rubber Cement & Gel Food Coloring

rubber cement eggs with gel food colors dye

4.80 from 10 votes

How To Color Easter Eggs With Rubber Cement & Gel Food Coloring

Learn how to color Easter eggs with gel food coloring and rubber cement, a technique which produces some spectacularly high contrast & gorgeous abstract designs! Use it on blown-out eggs or dyeable plastic eggs to preserve these cool Easter eggs for years to come…

Prep Time5

Cook Time25

Additional Time30

Total Time1

Course: DIY & Crafts

Servings: 12 dyed Easter eggs

Author: Tara Kuczykowski

Recommended Equipment

Supplies

Instructions

Using the water, vinegar, and gel food coloring, mix your desired dye shades according to the directions and color blending chart on the back of the food coloring package.
Start by dyeing your eggs a lighter base color. The actual color you select doesn’t matter so much as the length of time you leave the egg in the dye in this initial step. Check them frequently and remove while the intensity of color is still low. Drain off the dye and allow the egg to dry completely.
Once the eggs are dry, it’s time to apply the rubber cement. Holding an egg gently on either side, use the applicator brush to drizzle rubber cement over the egg in an abstract pattern. After a couple, you’ll get the hang of drizzling while avoiding your fingers. Allow the rubber cement to dry thoroughly.
Now it’s time to dye the eggs a second color. Choose a color that’s going to have high contrast with the base color, and leave the eggs in the dye until the color is very intense. Once you’re satisfied with the color, drain off the dye and allow the egg to dry completely again.
It’s time for the magic to happen! When your egg is thoroughly dry, simply use your fingers to gently rub the rubber cement off the eggs, revealing the lighter base color. If you’ve used blown-out eggs, be *very* gentle in this step, especially near the holes on either end. I cracked a couple of my favorite patterns when I was a little too handed in removing the rubber cement.

Tips & Suggestions

Important: This method was tested with the Betty Crocker Classic gel food coloring set. The Betty Crocker Neon colors set left some weird residue on the eggs that I was unable to remove completely.