Holi is here…do you have your colors ready?  Harmful chemical colors are one of the perils of Holi (we’re talking lead oxide, copper and mercury sulphite, etc.), so be wary of what hits your – and your kids’ skin.  But you can be safe and make your own Holi colors at home with just 4 ingredients from the grocery store:  red cabbage (for blue), turmeric (for yellow), onion skins (for red) and beets (for pink).  All you need is 4 saucepans and you can turn your kitchen into a science lab with your kids!

The formula is pretty much the same for all colors.  Take 4 cups of chopped red cabbage, 3 tablespoons turmeric, 4 cups of chopped beets and 4 cups of onion skins (from about 8 large yellow onions) and place each in a seperate pot.  Add 1 quart of water to each of the pots, bring to a boil, simmer for 30 minutes, and strain.  That’s it!  The colors will be very saturated, so you dilute with water for lots of Holi fun.  (Note:  the red cabbage solution will look purple at first, but don’t be fooled, just dilute it with water and let it sit for awhile – you’ll see it turn blue).

You have the basic primary colors – red, yellow, blue (plus pink) – so let your kids combine them to make their favorite.  We combined the red cabbage solution with the turmeric for a gorgeous green.  Yummy enough to drink – bottoms up!

(We got this idea from a Martha Stewart article about natural egg dyes – we just omitted the vinegar.  Thanks, Martha!)

Tags: Holi, nature

6 Responses to “Natural Eco Friendly Holi Colors”

1. Holi Egg Puppets Says:
   February 26th, 2010 at 12:24 am

   [...] in spring with crafty egg puppets – a perfect use of leftover Holi colors (see our post below on how to make your own Holi colors) -  and a creative twist to traditional Easter [...]

2. P Aruna Says:
   February 28th, 2011 at 5:21 am

   Its Great Idea to Celebrate the Holi Eco Friendly way

3. Natural Food Coloring for Holi Treats Says:
   March 4th, 2011 at 3:54 am

   [...] course you can always make your own colours (see last year’s post on Natural Eco Friendly Holi Colors), but I fear they may taint the food with unwanted flavours.  Not to mention that by the time [...]

4. Soul Says:
   March 15th, 2011 at 4:16 am

   Buy beautiful vibrant natural colors made by self help tribal groups supervised by ANGRAU in Hyderabad. For more details, contact http://www.hyderabadgoesgreen.com or call +91 7416790905

5. Ganesh Says:
   February 24th, 2012 at 11:02 pm

   This Holi, Everyone be alert of InOrganic Holi Colours,Don’t buy it from the market,if you can make from home. Thanks for above tips on making Eco Friendly Holi Coulours. Could give any recipe how i can make violet colour for Holi.

   Thanks

6. Wes Reineke Says:
   November 5th, 2012 at 2:45 am

   Way cool! Some extremely valid points! I appreciate you writing this post and the rest of the site is very good.

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