Old Friends and Book Ends: Repurposing Your Old Books

I was delighted to get so many responses last week to my personal book quandary.  Remember, I asked what to with a box of old, not particularly valuable, books before I move?

One reader suggested looking at Etsy.com, where books are routinely made into crafts.  So, on a whim this morning, after checking Etsy, I began looking for ideas myself.  I’m so glad I write this blog, because I have excuses to do things like this.

First things first, though.  Before you start cutting up books, you probably need to ask yourself a question or two.  Is the book valuable?  Squidoo’s article is a good place to begin.  Not only does the author discuss value, but also general information about how books are made and simple repairs if you decide you have a book worth keeping.

Just to showcase some of the possibilities out there, once you’ve decided your books are not valuable or worth saving intact, I’ve added a Book Crafts board to my Pinterest page.  Nothing like a visual jump start to get me in the mood, so I hope it works for you, as well.  For more information on any one of these pins, just click on the link beside/above/below it to go to the page where I saw it originally.

So, are you raring to go now?  Here’s a list of 80 awesome ideas for your old books, from using them as step stools and headboards to crafting pages into origami.  Plenty of links, too, to help you get started.  Take out your glue gun and Exacto knife and let the crafting begin.

You say 80 just isn’t enough?  20 Ways to Decorate with Book Pages has ideas for making a book swag or wreath or anything in between.  Great instructions, too.

Now, that makes 100 ideas, but how about one more, complete with a lovely tutorial?   You can find directions for an origami Christmas ornament here which will look lovely on your tree.   Since I can’t link directly to that page, scroll down to archives on the left and find the November 27th post. Check out her other ideas, though, while you’re at it.  This is a lovely quilty website.

And you still need ideas?  Really?  You say you want them all in one place? Well, good news.  The Repurposed Library by Lisa Occhipinti, an Etsy artist herself, pulls everything together for you.  And best of all, you know what?  If you don’t like her book?

You’ll know exactly what to do with it.

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