Blackberry Ink

This autumn the hedgerows seem fuller than ever with berries and fruits, or perhaps I think that every year. With so many blackberries on the brambles scaling the stone walls near my home there is some hope of picking more than we can eat and using them in another way. I headed out yesterday with R (10) and F (5) to go foraging, with a container each, hoping to fill both our bellies and our bowls.

F picked four berries for her bowl, and then decided to eat whatever R and I had amassed. To be fair the blackberries were often out of reach of her five year old arms, but she was definitely more interested in the instant gratification of eating the berries straight from the brambles than gathering enough to bring home to make into ink.

R and I managed to pick a good two cup fulls that didn’t end up in anyone’s belly! We got out the potato masher and a couple of bowls. Pouring one cup of berries into a bowl we mashed, with a little added water, until we reckoned we could mash no more. We then poured the mixture through a strainer into a new bowl, meaning we were left only with liquid. This was a lovely deep rich purple colour. Doing a little test first, we found a twig and dipped it in the ink and created some swirls on paper to check out the colour. Adding a teaspoon of vinegar next, having learnt that this would hold the colour, we experimented some more and noticed the change of colour as the ink dried on the page. Lastly a pinch of salt to preserve the ink and after a good mix we poured it into glass jars, ready for dipping nibs of all shapes and sizes in and perfecting out calligraphy! Twigs, feathers and whittled willow all worked a treat.