The kids really enjoy the "olden days". They spend lots of time playing Laura Ingalls Wilder and other pioneer type games. They often tell us they wish we could live without electricity and running water...
Today they wanted to make some old fashioned ink. They went out to the chicken house to get some feathers for quills - picked some mulberries and went to work. Their recipe was something like this: 1/2 cup mulberries, 1/2 tsp vinegar, 1/2 tsp salt.
1. Fill a strainer with the berries and hold it over a bowl.
2. Using the rounded back of a spoon, crush the berries against the strainer so that the berry juice strains into the bowl.
3. Keep adding berries until most of their juice has been strained out and only pulp remains.
4. Add the salt and vinegar to the berry juice. The vinegar helps the ink to retain its color and the salt keeps it from getting moldy.
5. If the berry ink is too thick, a tablespoon of water.
6. Store in a covered container.
7. Only make a small amount of berry ink at a time and when not in use, keep it tightly covered.
I love it when they can cover some science, history, home ec., and have fun all at the same time. And I suppose I can count the tie died clothing for art, can't I? And I love it when they can do it outside so the mess stays out there :)
Next project? Now they want to make their own paper to write on.
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