The founder of the Toronto Ink Company opens his bag before a trip to search for natural pigments on St. Patrick’s Island in Calgary.
Backpack Handmade in Tel Aviv using sturdy canvas, this Maayan Gutfeld Studio bag is a good size for foraging expeditions. I like to support small makers because of the care and thought they put into their products.
Watercolour Grid Paper Each indented page of this letterpress pad acts like a palette to test out colours. I get it at Case for Making in San Francisco – I’ve never seen this type of paper anywhere else.
Vials Any trip can become a foraging trip, and these thick glass vials are great for collecting small samples of anything from seeds and weeds to dirt or rust.
Notebook My notes are a constellation of ideas and observations about each foraging trip. I do a lot of research before and during, so there will be notes on things like a particular berry that grows in southern New York state.
Charcoal Holder Inserting a piece of soft rock into this tool and scratching it on paper gives me a sense of the pigment before grinding it up. I found it at Articulations, my favourite art–supply store in Toronto.