Egg dying basics

My passion for decorating easter eggs developed early in my childhood. I saw magic in dipping a boring white egg into a mug, only to remove it moments later, and have it be transformed into a vibrantly colored thing of beauty.
As I have aged, I have toyed around with varying techniques of decorating eggs, and I will share some of these methods throughout the coming weeks.

The basics:
Invest in some Wilton Food Coloring pastes. You will get such vibrant colors that cannot be rivaled by the boxed PAAS and DUDLEY sets. Plus, you can use them for all your food coloring needs.
If you want to blow your eggs out, invest in a Blas-Fix. I think it is currently my favorite gadget. There are several other egg blowers on the market which I have not had the opportunity to try. The Blas-fix however is relatively inexpensive and very easy to use. I love it. It beats the old way of actually blowing into eggs and giving myself a headache.
If you plan on dying already blown eggs you will need to weigh them down in the dye. Try setting something like an acrylic paint bottle on top of them.

Now to do some standard egg dying, you will need the following:
Large mugs or mason jars
1/2-3/4 cup of boiling water (Playing with the amount of water will vary the shades of the egg dye)
1 tsp white vinegar
Food coloring (preferably of the gel paste variety)
Tooth picks
Large spoon or egg dippers
Optionally: a paint brush to mix the food coloring with. It breaks up any globs and ensures the color is fully dissolved.
Be sure to cover your work areas with a plastic table cloth and/or newspaper and paper towels. The food coloring pastes will stain.
Take a small amount of food coloring using your toothpick and stick it into your jar/mug. Add the vinegar and swirl the toothpick around loosening the gel as much as possible. Gradually add in the hot water and stir ensuring the food coloring is fully dissolved. Let the dyes cool and begin coloring your eggs!

NOTE: Do NOT add vinegar to PINK and RED food coloring. It breaks it up into  chunks and will leave your eggs splotchy. I have found, for pink especially, it is best to omit the vinegar for these.
This basic egg dye formula will lead to all sorts of wonderful coloring experiences.