Avocado seeds

Making ink from avocado seeds

Bring chopped avocado stones, water and soda ash to a low boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. The chopped avocado pits will begin to turn the water pink. This should take anywhere between 20-40 minutes to see the colour change.
When the desired colour is reached, turn off the heat.

Soak off the heat for a minimum of one hour.
Strain the pits into a bowl with a fine mesh strainer.
Strain the ink slowly into the jar using a coffee filter and a small funnel.
To add in the powdered gum Arabic, heat up the ink again but don’t bring it to a boil. Whisk the powder into the heated ink until dissolved.
When the ink has cooled, add 8-10 drops of alcohol per 1-ounce bottle of ink to help preserve the ink. Optionally this can also be done by adding a clove, wintergreen oil or thyme oil.

Secure the lid and refrigerate to help preserve.

Text submitted by the maker and edited by the Future Materials Bank. For information about reproducing (a part of) this text, please contact the maker.