Winter Foraged Walnut Ink
+ Secret Stories of Sepia
Journaling in Place
When I spotted these frosted black walnuts on the ground the other day, it got me thinking about ink.
Of course, it’s way past the typical time to harvest them, but I’m taking a nature journaling class with
and thought it might be fun to create a place-based ink to use in my journal.Turns out rotting walnut hulls can, in fact, be used to make a beautiful, rich chocolatey brown ink.
Trial & Error
It took a little figuring and several mistakes—like don’t just throw the hulls in a pot of boiling water (Psst—it’s going to make your ink-making far more labor intensive!) But when all said and done, the results are so worth it. I am loving this ink!
Sepia as a color is just so scrumptious! And the fact that it’s homemade and place-based adds a special dimension to my journaling process—and I’m wanting to journal more than I ever have before!
So, what follows is a little tutorial I made just for you. This way you can learn from my mistakes and stay focused on the fun.
I hope it inspires you to make yourself some ink and get out there and enjoy the great outdoors in a whole new way!
But first, here’s a little Secret Stories video about sepia…