Playsilk Grass

Playsilks, love them. So do my kids. To be honest, when I first heard about them, I thought they were kind of silly. And I really didn't think my kids would actually play with them much. Boy was I wrong. They're just large dyed silk scarves - well, to an adult anyway. To a child, they can become blankets, rivers, capes, magic shields, princess veils, ghosts.... The list goes on and on, and only stops when the creative play does too.

They are also great for covering toy baskets and bins at night, my children seem to sleep better when most of their toys are out of sight (sound silly? Try it, stream line your bedroom to just the essentials, or hide things, I swear, you get a better nights rest).

So, all of that being said, this year we are replacing Easter grass with playsilks. I dyed a few with packets of kool-aid that I picked up especially for this project, but you can also use food coloring, or natural dyes. We are going to dye Easter eggs tonight with food, so I'm going to add a few silks to the pots and see how it turns out - I'll share my findings, don't worry.

Here's how to do it...

You need:
Large pots or stainless steel or enamel bowls (plastic will stain)
White Vinegar
Coloring of choice (kool-aid, or food coloring...)
Kitchen tongs or other similar non-porous kitchen tool
White silk scarves (I bought mine here and purchased 30"x30" Habotai)

1) Put white scarves in a mixture of 3 cups hot water and 1 cup vinegar to soak while mixing your color pot.

2) Mix packet of kool-aid (1 for a pastel effect, up to 3 for bright vivid colors), 2 cups vinegar, and 3 cups hot water. Stir to dissolve.

3) Add the scarf and mix around until fully colored. Use kitchen tongs or some sort of utensil for this, the colored water will stain your hands.

4) Once you have the color you want, rinse the scarf under luke warm water until the water runs clear. Squeeze excess water out and hang to dry.

That's it!