Decorating with recycled books

Here is a great way to go-green with your decorating. Use older hardcover books in your decorating instead of throwing them away.

I picked up a few from a second hand store for about $1 a piece, and chose books with a canvas type cover-not paper. Two coats of basic satin house paint covered any color that was on the book. In addition, I put a nice thick coat of the same paint over the outside edges of the pages. This had the effect of gluing the pages together.

I thinned out some acrylic craft paint with water and cut up one of my son's old t-shirts. (Do not thin the paint too much) Then using a damp piece of "t-shirt rag" is lightly wiped the craft paint until I reached the desired aged look. I touched up the edges of the books using a dry brush technique to a darker tone than the rest of the book.


That's all. Once dry I tried placing them in various combinations. This one worked well with a hardcover book I did not paint. The cover is very attractive so I left it in tact.