My mom was a fantastic interior designer and she always preached that all spaces should have books & plants; I have followed her mantra in my own decorating style, finding that books & plants add warmth, interest and bring spaces alive.
Today I am focusing on books. Since the kids started school today and are hitting the books once again after summer break, I thought it would be appropriate to share how I hit the books around here.
I use books throughout the house and I pick up vintage books at thrifts stores, garage sales, flea markets, etc. After my consigning days ended I was left with some book inventory that did not really match my decorating style. above is an example of said books.
So I want to share ways you can alter books to coordinate & compliment your decor and decorating style.
§paint
This is a super easy way to make your books monochromatic and coordinate you decor palette. Last Halloween I created some spell books and gave a tutorial on how to do this here {spell books – DIY}. I used chalk paint to paint the books. This is a great way to paint your books in neutral tones, gray, beige, off white, etc. They are fairly quick to paint and also dry pretty fast.
I further stamped the painted books with the appropriate titles which brings me to my next technique.
§ stenciling | stamping
I used craft paint to stamp the titles on my halloween books. I also used craft paint to stencil these books I sold in my booth. I used a few different stencils to add interest to the book stack.
§ paper {wrapping|sheet music|poster|map|etc.}
Remember when we covered our textbooks for school with kraft paper? {I might be dating myself here} well anyway, take that same concept and use pretty wrapping paper or any kind of paper that you like. I used sheet music to cover these books here. The sheet music was about an 1/8 of an inch too short so I added the linen tape measure ribbon on the top cover, bringing both sides flush to the book edges. I use sheet music for many uses and you can read about that here. I used spray adhesive to adhere my paper to the book but you could also used modge podge, craft glue or double sided tape.
§ fabric
The same way you can cover the books with pretty paper you can use pretty fabric. I had a remnant piece of fabric left over from covering the doors on my secretary desk and it was just enough to cover these two books. I really love how they turned out. Once again I used spray adhesive and it worked like a charm.
§ naked
A few years ago stripped books became all the rage and Restoration Hardware sold these bundles for a pretty penny I am sure. Well, you can create your own with $1 book from the thrift store. Just use an x-acto knife to cut off the cover. Open the book and cut the cover away from the first page all the way down. Do this on the front and back cover. Once the cover is separated from the book it will expose the spine and binding. You can do as many books as you want for your bundle and then wrap them with a piece of twine. Viola!
§ embellishments
You can embellish books for a particular holiday, specific party|occasion, or any theme you wish. Here is a book I embellished for Halloween using burlap ribbon, a homemade tag using an image from The Graphics Fairy and a skeleton from the dollar store. The possibilities are endless although I seem to use the same formula; 1} some type of ribbon|twine to wrap around the book(s), 2} a graphic or word tag, 3} a doodad. Besides the skeleton as a doodad I’ve used chandelier drops, vintage jewelry, sea shells…
§ plain
This is about altering the way a book looks by how you display it rather than doing something to it. Sometimes when the spines don’t coordinate with the look i’m going for I turn them around so the pages face out instead, giving a more neutral look. Also instead of displaying a book series all lined up in a row, change the direction of the display with some standing up and some laying on their side. This gives added height and depth which gives a display|vignette more interest.
Hope one or more of these techniques inspires you to use books in a new way throughout your home.
Happy Back to School !
sharing @:
amaze me monday @ dwellings-the heart of your home
show&share @ coastal charm
the scoop @ stonegable
inspire me monday @ my uncommon slice of suburbia
metamorphis monday @ between naps on the porch
make it pretty @ the dedicated house
motivation monday @ making our life matter
celebrate your story @ the sweet sensations
mmm @ keeping it simple
inspire me tuesday @ a stroll thru life
the inspiration board @ carolyn’s homework
talk of the town @ knick of time
wow @ savvy southern style
wonderful wednesday @ oh my heartsie girl
sizzle into summer diy by design
wake up wednesday @ god’s growing garden
home&garden @ a delightsome life
syc @ have a daily dose of mrs. olson
share your style @ little farmstead
vintage charm @ charm bracelet diva
the inspiration gallery @ craftberry bush
feathered nest friday @ french country cottage
shabbilicious friday @ shabby art boutique
morning cup of joe @ the cottage market
simple@sweet @ rooted in thyme
friday’s 5 features @ diy-vintage-chic
pinworthy projects @ my suburban kitchen
craft frenzy @ craft dictator
the creative collection @ the crafted sparrow
party palooza @ i heart naptime
funtastic friday @ olives & okra
saturday sparks @ pieced pastimes
bouquet of talent @ life on lakeshore drive
share it one more time @ lilacs & longhorns
sundays at home @ love of home
creative corner @ curly crafty mom
dishing it digging it @ rustic & refined
tuesdays w/ a twist @ stone cottage adventures
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