New uses for old books, another upcycle victory....

As I'm typing I know some librarian is hearing something akin to nails on a chalkboard instead of a great upcycle story (insert hysterical action here). I consider this more of a rescue of all those poor, lonely books that I see e.very.where. Boxes of them at yard sales and flea markets just wasting away.

I started with this fantastic embossed cover and back cover from this old Dictionary. After wrangling the cover and back off, I, with the help of Mr. Gluegun and his muscles, added the holes on the side. This was a big challenge. The older the book gets it seems to get harder. It was too much for my little Zutter machine so it was done by an all and and a hammer. Whewww. It took a lot more muscle power than I expected.

Then I added assorted sheets for the inside with cardstock and added some sheets of the Dictionary too. These pieces are several sheets which I sewed together. This is meant to be a backdrop for my daughter to use for drawing or painting onto.

I also made a little canvas pocket for the back of the book to put little treasures in. Or, she can use it for pencils and such. This was another gift for my girl on her birthday.

I also made a second book too. Click on the images to make them bigger if you would like to see those details.

I had the cool spines from each book left over and did not want them to go to waste. They made great material for bookmarks that I added to each notebook. I was so pleased with how they turned out and more importantly, my daughter loved them and plans to give them a lot of use.

I have made a few more and added them to my Etsy shop too if anyone would like to purchase one. Just follow the link on the left side of the blog to get to my shop.

So, like all the things I share with you all, I hope this inspires you to look at those books a little differently too.