Liz, from Chicago, IL, sent in this great idea. Let’s take a look at it…
What did you do?
First, get snacking! The next time you crave pistachios, toss your shells into a bowl. Once you have about 1 cups worth, you’re ready to dye. All you need are the following:
-pistachio shells
-liquid food coloring
-baking sheet
-1 tbsp water
Mix 1 tbsp water with approximately 15 drops of your desired food coloring. Pour mixture over pistachios shells and mix well. If a darker color is desired, you can add a few more drops of food coloring directly to the bowl (no need to add more water) and mix. Once you’ve reached your desired shade, spread shells onto the baking sheet to dry, leaving excess liquid in the bowl. Let shells dry on the baking sheet for a full day. Colored shells can be stored in a Ziploc bag or other airtight container and used again and again.
Toddlers could certain help with the dying process by mixing the food coloring and water, pouring it over the shells, and giving it all a stir.
Note: The shells will be bolder in color once fully dried, so don’t worry if they look a bit pale when wet.
The colored pistachios are excellent for sensory bins! Blue shells can represent the sky, green as grass, red as hot lava… the possibilities are endless! Our first pistachio sensory bin featured blue shells as the sky to which I added cotton ball clouds, butterflies, birds, a pipe cleaner rainbow, foam stars, and a yellow ping pong ball sun. The bottom portion of the bin featured green shells as the grass to which I added a few jungle animals, flowers, and small sticks.
For younger ones, shells can be tossed into an empty water bottle or other clear container and used as a sensory bottle or shaker.
Tell the Housebound With Kids community a bit about yourself…
My name is Liz Stanish, and I’m a SAHM to my 2-year old son. We live in Chicago, IL.
@ecstanish
Do you have any tips for other parents?
Sometimes I spend a ton of time ordering craft supplies and preparing an activity for my son. The greatest realization I’ve had is that he enjoys the activities that took five minutes of me wandering around our home gathering random things just as much. So, grab a bin or a bag and see what goodies you have around the house: seashells from a recent vacation, a button collection, scrap paper, an expired box of cereal, etc.
