DIY: Eco-friendly Rangoli colors at home
Okay..so Diwali is around the corner, and I am surely very excited about it. Lights, decorations, those vibes, it’s something I wait for the entire year. You might definitely make ranoli at Sankranti or Pongal or any other festival, but decorating the courtyard with rangoli amplifies the beauty of the house.
For years, I myself have been using store-bought colours for rangoli as they are very convenient to buy and use. And I actually never thought that they could be harmful as well, until I got to know about the presence of mercury, lead, and other harmful chemicals in rangoli colors. This definitely offered a cheap product, but not something I was ready to use ever again.
But the celebration must go on. And to celebrate the festival in an eco-friendly way, I will share the way I learnt to make an easy eco-friendly rangoli color.
Know how to make eco-friendly rangoli colors at home
It’s easy to make rangoli colors at home. All you need is a base ingredient and a color type to mix into it.
Combination 1:
Sand+Organic holi color/ Acrylic color/food color
Take any color you have, mix it with a small amount of water. And then, using a sieve, add sand to the solution.You can increase or decrease the color as per your pigmentation needs. Finally, let it dry overnight.
Combination 2:
Salt & Organic holi color/ Acrylic color/food color
Here, you can directly mix color with salt. No need to dilute anything. Keep on mixing till you get the desired color. Let it dry and you are set to go.
Combination 3:
Rice flour+Salt + Organic holi color/ Acrylic color/food color
Take rice flour and salt in equal proportion. Add in the desired color and mix to get a consistent colored powder.
Tip:
- You can add sand to give a more “flowy” texture to your rangoli color.
- For a perfect white color, mix rice flour with salt in equal proportions.
Other options to explore
- Flower rangoli: Floral rangoli is the most environmentally friendly. You can use marigold, roses, or any other flower to make your rangoli more vibrant.
- Direct from your kitchen– Agh.. I have seen people recommend powdering down the dried kitchen ingredients to use as rangoli color. I am not sure about this as I am concerned about the variation in texture obtained and also that going this way will actually waste a lot of otherwise useful ingredients. But still, if you want to give it a try, here are a few things to use:
- Orange color: Powdered marigold leaves
- Green color: Dried coriander or spinach leaves or other green herbs
- Red: beetroot powder
- Pink: Dried rose petals
- Brown: Powdered cinnamon sticks
The best that has worked is rice and salt. Try and share this with others to celebrate a colorful & eco-friendly Diwali this year.
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