Books The Art of Upcycling
Books
Old books don’t have to just be up on a shelf, collecting dust. They don’t have to be
boxed up and put in the basement either. There is plenty of fun and exciting
upcycling ideas that use them!
Paper Decorations
You can cut the pages to make paper decorations. For example, Christmas trees that you
make a banner around a room with. You can cut out any shape that you would like to.
The use of cookie cutters to help you draw and then cut out can be very useful if you
aren’t the best at freehand.
Wreath
Create a lovely black and white wreath out of your old book pages. For this project,
you will need a circle punch. You can use it to cut out all of the pieces you need,
and they will all be uniform for the project. They can be glued around a round frame
you make out of wire as the base of the wreath.
Decorative Storage Containers
Take old cereal boxes and oatmeal containers to make decorate storage containers. They
can be used to hold your various supplies and materials for upcycling projects. Use
pieces of books to cover the body and lid of these storage containers. It is very
appealing!
Spring Butterflies
If you have had enough of the harsh winter, spring can’t arrive soon enough! A fun
project to help you get ready for it is to create spring butterflies. They can be made
out of books. Make them several layers thick, with the top layer smaller and then they
get progressively bigger. You can use string to hang them and it will look like the
butterflies are fluttering as air circulates around them.
Ornaments
For books that have colored pages, you can create ornaments out of them. You can cut
them into round or star designs. There are plenty of videos online that show you how
to make a 3-D appearance from them without it being a hard project to complete. You
will need a glue gun and some string to complete these types of ornaments.
Wallpaper
Not sure how to decorate the walls of your study or office? Why not try something very
unique? You can wallpaper with pages from various books that you no longer use. Make
sure you put a clear protective coat over it so that the pages don’t turn dingy yellow
over time.
You may find that as your eyes wander to the walls now and then, you get some
additional inspiration for what you are working on from your wallpaper books. This can
save you lots of money too as you won’t have to pay for expensive wallpaper. All you
will need is the adhesive to hold the pages in place and the clear protective coat as
your expenses.
Inspirational Candle Jars
Placing candles into older jars is a nice touch for any event or for decorating your
home. You can make them inspirational though by covering them with words from books.
People who see them are going to be curious about what the written materials have to
say. What they find may be inspiring to them!
Coasters
Don’t spend money on coasters every again! Cut out a round pattern so that you can get
them all the same size. Then take books and cut them out and laminate them. You can
use these coasters again and again. Your guests will love the idea, and always take
the time to read the message that is before them each time you offer them a coaster to
use.
