How to dye Easter eggs: Getting the perfect shades with tips from the food dye experts

I imagine that the McCormick's website must get more traffic this time of year than any other, considering that it's pretty the perfect starting point for anyone looking for a legit Easter egg color guide. If you want to know just how to dye Easter eggs with food coloring, and just which exact combo of those teeny little drops will yield the perfect hues, this is the mothership. While we've shared some outstanding natural ways to dye your Easter eggs, I also understand that when it comes to kids, sometimes a pale kinda-yellow-brown isn't going to cut it when what they really want is bright neon orange. And that a kid like mine who loves turquoise (this year) will probably not settle for any other color of blue. Here's an Easter egg color guide, complete with  tips from the Easter egg dyeing experts, so you can get the Easter egg colors you want. Of course, feel free to experiment! Sometimes that's the fun part. Affiliate inks in this post mean we may earn a small commission on some purchases at no additional cost to you. All images ©McCormick's

Related: 17 super cool Easter egg decorating ideas that are all about color

Easter Egg Color Guide: What You Need Be sure to check out the McCormick's Easter Egg dyeing guide for tons of tricks, fun crafts, and more detailed instructiions including their product recos. What you need:

• McCormick Food Coloring in Assorted Colors (Amazon, Target, Walmart)
• McCormick Neon Assorted Food Colors (Amazon, Walmart)
• Basic White Vinegar (not balsamic!)
• A saucepan for boiling eggs
• A colander (this is our favorite)
• A slotted spoon (those egg "holders" in the kits aren't all that useful)
• Newspaper or a drop cloth for lining your workspace

They also have a great tip for cutting holes in a used paper towel roll to use as a makeshift egg dryer. Upcycling!

Easter egg color guide: Dye combinations for classic colors

Bookmark this page or save the handy infographics to your phone's camera roll for quick reference on Easter Sunday. Turquoise: 2 drops blue, 5 drops green Apricot: 4 drops green, 1 drop pink Raspberry: 12 drops pink, 2 drops blue Deep Purple: 7 drops blue, 3 drops pink, Deep Blue: 1 drop purple, 9 drops blue, 2 drops green Green Apple: 20 drops green, 2 drops blue

Easter egg color guide: Dye combinations for Pantone shades

Tangerine: 5 drops red, 24 drops yellow, 1 drop green Marsala: 10 drops green, 20 drops red, 4 drops blue Lucite green: 10 drops green, 2 drops blue Strawberry Ice: 20 drops red, 1 drop green, 1 drop blue You'll also find the site is filled with tons of tips, tricks, techniques for creating the classic color-wash Easter eggs, designing fun marbleized Easter eggs, or experimenting with dyeing two-toned Easter eggs or  polka-dot Easter eggs -- all adorable.

More inspiration: Sharpie Easter eggs! 19 of the coolest no-mess ideas How to dye Easter eggs naturally with herbs, spices, fruits and more 24 pop culture Easter eggs featuring your kids’ favorite characters 8 simply gorgeous, no-dye ways to decorate your Easter eggs 9 of the prettiest floral Easter egg decorating ideas.  15 gorgeous Easter egg decorating ideas all about color 8 fun, easy Easter egg ideas for toddlers and preschoolers. Big kids shouldn’t have all the fun!