Some of the best resources for my ink come from the natural dyer’s recipes I find online. I have seen a few posts on hyacinths being a good flower for dyes, and I tried it a few years ago. Now I make it every year. To me, it is the epitome of the softness of spring. My sister has a large amount growing in the backyard of her office building so she gets me a baggie full every spring.

It is another one of those simple recipes: put flowers in a small Mason jar and cover with boiled spring water, then add 1 tsp of alum. I usually place the concoction in the sun on the porch for a few days but it was a cool grey day so I placed the Mason jar in a water bath and simmered it for a few hours at 190°.

Test the color with strips, and when you think it’s good, let the tea cool. Bottle it with 10ml of gum arabic for every 50 ml of liquid. Add a drop of clove essential oil to keep it from getting moldy. Keep it in the fridge.