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Lifestyle

What You Should and Shouldn’t Dye Green for St. Patrick’s Day

This article is written by a student writer from the Spoon University at Alabama chapter.

St. Patrick’s Day is a day when people who are less than one percent suddenly become full-blown Irish. It’s also a day when green beer is a thing. But really, not everything looks the best dyed green. Instead of discovering that your green meal looks disgusting, check out these tips of what you should and shouldn’t dye green this St. Patrick’s Day.

Should: Beer

GREEN BEER. (Green pee, though? Stay tuned, I’ll let you know.) Seriously, beer is beer, and we don’t care about the color. Especially after we had a few.

Shouldn’t: Scrambled Eggs

St. Patrick's Day spinach cabbage
Aimee Renee

Let’s be real, doctors don’t always get it right. Green eggs and ham are not very appealing, Dr. Seuss. 

Should: Cake/Cupcakes

Probably the easiest thing to dye green is cake. Add it into your batter and when it comes out it’ll be as green as Irish soil.

Shouldn’t: Your Fingers

I’m looking at you, Chrissy Teigen. 

Should: Rice Krispies Treats

Easy to make, easy to eat and doesn’t look disgusting green. Learn how to make them here.

Shouldn’t: Waffles

I mean, I get it, but it doesn’t actually turn out green. Don’t do it, man, just don’t do it. Waffles should only be one color: waffle color.

Should: Ice Cream/Milkshakes

Green Shamrock Shakes for the win. 

Shouldn’t: Mashed Potatoes

St. Patrick's Day herb vegetable
Gabrielle Altman

I feel like we all need to publicly apologize to potatoes for the mistreatment. You look like guacamole, not the buttery goddess you really are. 

Should: Chicago River

Fun fact: The powder they add to the water is actually orange, but turns green on impact. They’ve been dumping about 40 pounds of environmentally safe powder into the river each year since 1962.

Shouldn’t: Your Pets

Repeat after me, I will not dye my pets different colors for the sake of an Instagram picture. It can be harmful to your pet, so please be careful when dyeing their hair. Let their natural colors shine and their lives be long and chemical free. But if you still want to, please be smart because dog skin is different from human skin and normal hair dye could be uncomfortable for them. Instead of using hair dye, use that remaining food coloring that you didn’t put in your beer and color your dog with it. It’s suggested to use an organic food coloring that has less artificial colors. Simply mix the food coloring with water and put in a spray bottle and spray your furry friend down. Dry off and you got yourself a colored pup. It’s safe, harmless and can be washed out.

Wear your green, drink lots of green beer and tell that guy yelling in the bar about “how Irish he is” to póg mo thóin (kiss my ass). 

I’m a caffeine-dependent senior majoring in journalism at the University of Alabama. I like to write and I like to eat and I made a cake when I found out I could do both at the same time. My ultimate goal in life is to have a job that lets me sleep in until 10 and show up in my pajamas. Roll tide.