Letterbox gift order unique handmade ink sketching set, A7 sketchbook and botanical inks for drawing, painting and calligraphy, art gift

A unique handmade natural ink gift set which fits safely through your loved one's letterbox!

With four natural drawing inks in beautiful, earthy shades, an A7 handmade watercolour sketchbook and a glass tip dip pen, this letterbox gift set is a thoughtful gift for any artist, or journal keeper. Each set is one of a kind! You can add a gift message on a complimentary handwritten gift tag, or I also offer a gift wrapping service.

These botanical inks are handmade in tiny batches from responsibly foraged or sustainably sourced plant material and carefully processed to coax out their colours. The inks in this set have been specially selected for sketching, drawing or writing with.

Each set includes:

* A retro comic-book style metal tin containing four 10ml screwcap vials of handmade botanical ink:

-Persian Walnut – a rich, warm brown ink made from foraged Persian walnut husks

-Japanese Walnut & Iron – a rich, matt black-brown ink made from foraged walnut husk blended with iron water

-Iron Gall & Wine – a beautiful glossy steely blue-black ink made to a historic recipe, using foraged oak knopper galls fermented for several weeks in red wine, before being blended with iron.

-Tamil Indigo – a stunning rich, deep velvety blue ink made from ethically sourced natural indigo pigment.

* A glass dropper to decant the inks

* A handmade glass dip pen

* An A7 landscape sized handmade sketchbook / journal with 20 hand-torn deckle-edge pages (ie 40 usuable sides) of premium quality 100% cotton 300gsm Fabriano Artistico Hot Press watercolour paper. Page size is approximately 105 x 74mm, and the overall size of the closed sketchbook is approximately 115 x 95mm. Choose from an upcycled leather cover or a vegan-friendly cork bark fabric cover.

International buyers, please be aware that standard shipping for this item is untracked, so I will not be able to tell you where your parcel is after dispatch. For your peace of mind, you may wish to upgrade to Tracked Shipping, especially during the busy holiday period.

Inks layer beautifully to create deep, rich values, or can be used in a wash for softer, subtle tones. You can achieve wonderful effects by combining different handmade inks on a page and exploring their unique interactions!

Most of these inks are also available separately in 10ml vials or 30ml bottles order. For further information of each colour, please see individual listings for full details.

All of my inks and paints are carefully handmade in tiny batches for use in my own nature journal and art practice.
Botanical inks are best used with dip pens or brushes and are not suitable for use in Fountain Pens. Bamboo dip pens and natural bristle calligraphy brushes are available in my other listings.

Please shake natural inks well before use, and decant a small amount into an inkwell, dish or bottle cap to draw. You can adjust the flow of the ink to suit your own style by diluting with a drop or two of water, or thicken by adding extra Gum Arabic, or simply allowing some of the liquid to evaporate from the well before use.

Part of the charm and character of natural inks is that every batch is slightly different depending on the season, growing conditions and the soil plants have grown in. The colour and consistency of natural inks can vary considerable depending on the paper surface you use, and can also change over time. It's recommended to keep them out of direct sunlight and in a cool dark place - ideally refrigerated. It's recommended that artworks made with botanical inks are kept out of direct sunlight, or treated with a fixative spray such as Spectrafix.