From purses to vases to wreaths, old books are being turned into new treasures all over the place. Here are a few of my favorite things to do with discarded paperbacks.
A side note before I start talking about destroying books to make arts and crafts: No one wants the books I use. First, the books are discarded library books, meaning they haven’t been checked out in years or are too damaged to circulate. The books are also leftovers from the annual book sale and were bound for the recycling bin before I rescued them to give them new lives as hedgehogs, angels,or poetry
1. Paperback Hedgehogs:
Paperback hedgehogs are adorable, easy, and time consuming. You can decorate them any way you want. So, make the Avengers, or just make a Hedgehog army. Make them cute or make them scary. Let your creativity run wild! Smaller paperbacks of about 100 pages work best for this, but since I mainly had thick romance novels, I just split each book into two sections, thereby making two hedgehogs from one book. The hedgehog shape is made by folding the pages in half, then folding the corners down. More detailed instructions can be found here.
2. Book Page Angels:
Unfortunately, I have no photos of my version of this angel I found on Pinterest. These cute ornaments consist of two book pages, accordion folded, sliced a little with some scissors, and wedged together to make an angel. Then, using hot glue, I stick a decoration on the part where the two pages come together. Small wooden hearts and stars are great for this. Then I glue a ribbon or piece of yarn in the top back so it can hang on a tree. These are great for Christmas, and actually proved to be a perfect Relay for Life Fundraiser here at the library.
3. Black Out Poetry:
This is a fun activity to do with books or with newspapers. Start with a page out of a book or from the newspaper. Underline or circle words to make a poem, then color over all the other words with a black marker. You can get creative with doodles or shapes, anything that will make your words pop. You can even use white paint to go over the words you want to get rid of, then create an illustration to go along with your poem when it’s dry. For more ideas, check out this awesome Slideshare from a school in California.
For more ideas, search “Book crafts” on Pinterest. Or, if Pinterest isn’t your thing, visit the library and browse the 745.5 area. Here, among other great books on paper crafting, you’ll find The Repurposed Library by Lisa Occhipinti. What will you make with an old paperback?
Liz Strauss
Crafty Teen Librarian