Dying your own clothes and bags can be a great way to customize, but how do you do it? It turns out you can use parts of food you ordinarily wouldn’t eat or pollinator flowers to create several colors! We showed Community Corner participants three colors they could make with avocado pits, red cabbage, and marigold, and we’re happy to share the information with you as well! Special thanks to Mel Williams for instructing us on these options and demonstrating how it’s done.


Natural Ink Colors

How to make natural inks out of flowers and veggies at Food to Power

Instructions provided by Mel Williams




Materials and Tools 

Make sure you use these only for crafts, not for food prep!

  • Coffee filters

  • Glass jars and bowls

  • Strainers (mesh strainer, colander, coffee strainer…)

  • Stirring implements (ice tea spoons, chopsticks…)

  • Old French press or other strainers/colanders

Ink #1: Avocado Pits

Supplies:

  • 4-6 pits

  • Soda ash

Directions:

  1. Simmer for 2 hours, let rest overnight

  2. Simmer 2 more hours and strain out avocado pits and pieces

  3. Add soda ash to deepen and brighten color

Ink #2: Purple Cabbage

Supplies:

  • Purple cabbage leaves or cabbage head

  • 2-4 tsp salt

  • Lemon juice

  • Baking soda 

Directions:

  1. Chop up leaves and simmer covered in water (without boiling) for 1-2 hours

  2. Add drops of lemon juice and let rest to brighten purples

  3. Add baking soda to create a blue color rather than purple

Ink #3: Marigolds 

Supplies:

  • Marigold flowers

  • Calcium

  • Soda ash

Directions:

  1. Pull petals out

  2. Simmer petals covered in water for 1-2 hours

  3. Add calcium to brighten yellow 

  4. Add drop(s) of soda ash and let rest to deepen yellow



Finishing the ink:

  1. After simmering colors, strain through a colander with a coffee filter inside

  2. Add or play with modifiers if you wish*

    1. *Modifiers: Alum, citric acid (or lemon juice), soda ash, iron water, vinegar, salt, baking soda, calcium (chalk)

Any powdered modifier can be dissolved in warm water, heated (not boiled) on the stovetop 

  1. Add a 1/2 teaspoon Gum Arabic mixture and a few drops of clover (or wintergreen) oil to 1 cup of completed color

    1. How to make the Gum Arabic mixture:

  • Add 1tsp Gum Arabic to one cup hot (not boiling) water and stir*

  • Add this to a saucepan of water and heat until completely dissolved (will be clear)

  • Wait about 4hrs or overnight

*This takes a while! Just keep stirring and breaking up the pieces that clump together 

(Tip: use a straw as a dropper)

Love the tote bags we’re working with? Reach out to info@foodtopowerco.org for more information about getting your own!

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