Let’s talk about books today and what you can do with (old) books and how to decorate your house in a more beautiful way with books.
decorate with old books
When you are decorating your home, books are the most useful tool. no matter if your style is modern or cottage, beach or traditional, there is a set of books that will suit you. books as decoration can be the main focal point or they can work as supporting characters that make other elements take center stage.
You are reading: How to wrap books for decor
If you are an avid book reader and collector, wonderful designer items are available to you. If you don’t have many books, I recommend getting some just for decoration. They don’t have to be fancy or expensive, you can do a lot with plain old thrift store paperbacks. Later I’ll show you how to decorate and alter old books so they’re perfect for display in your next decorating project.
HOW TO USE OLD BOOKS CREATIVELY IN YOUR DECOR
use books as risers in your decor
I’m sure you’ve heard by now that when creating a pretty vignette or mantelpiece decoration, adding height is very important. books are the best tools to make sure the ups and downs in your decor are balanced. Adding a stack of books under your vase, candle holder, or decorative accessory is the easiest way to get the height you need for a balanced look.
Because books come in so many shapes, sizes, and colors, it’s not hard to use them to form the perfect pedestal for your focal point in your design.
Alternatively, books can also blend into the background very easily and be the perfect neutrals that act as lifts without drawing attention to themselves. Especially when you’re creating a centerpiece in a box or when you’re using a tray or low basket for your decor, quietly sliding a few books under your decor will give them just the right height so they don’t disappear into the tray, without drawing too much. the attention away from your pretty flowers or beautiful sculpture.
use books to focus attention and create or fill spaces
Like I said, using books as risers helps draw attention to the focal point of your decor. But books can help in more ways to give your décor proper attention and that’s because of the way they add spacing.
A few colorful books or a nice stack of books stamped with a personal message can fill in some gaps in your decor. They can add extra volume and interest to your coffee table vignette or mantelpiece.
On the other hand when your books are neutral and without too much color or pattern they can be the perfect backdrop to pull your eyes into the decor. It pays to decorate some old books in neutral colors and soft hues so you have them on hand as additional accessories, more on that later.
add color with books
With or without a dust cover, books are often colorful and vibrant. select a series of books with the appropriate color palette and use them to highlight the color or to reinforce the main color of your decoration. Pink and red books are perfect in a Valentine’s vignette, green and red books can be perfect for traditional Christmas decorations, and white, blue, and green books can really enhance the look of a beach decoration. decorative stacked books can really bring a splash of color and some extra cheer and style to your home.
You can even go so far as to display your color coordinated books on your bookshelves and create a rainbow shelf. I personally love that look and have worn it often.
show books in a collection
I’ve already discussed quite a few ways that books can be used in your décor as props that direct and focus attention on the main stars.
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but of course books can be so beautiful that they can be the decoration themselves.
A collection of books is a beautiful way to decorate a coffee table or shelf. make small stacks of similar sized books on your table, or turn them into a beautiful farmhouse style patterned book stack or add some embellishments to old books and let them shine on their own.
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ideas for decorating books
Now that I hope I’ve convinced you that you need more books in your decorating life, let me show you a few ways I’ve modified books to make them the perfect decorating accessories.
when books have a nice cover in the perfect color, you can use them as is. but sometimes you need a neutral book to match your decor. or maybe the perfect size and height book has an ugly cover in the absolutely wrong color. what to do then?
You can easily decorate your books to make them perfect for your decorating needs. There are permanent and less permanent ways to change the look of a book.
remove covers
I love this trick, especially when decorating with old books. sometimes all you need to do is carefully remove a book cover to create a neutral book perfect for your décor. old hardcover books can be transformed in seconds this way. You may even find yourself in for a happy surprise because very old books have sometimes been bound with old papers that create a wonderful decoration in themselves. you can tie a ribbon or twine around a stack of bare books to make them stand out more, or use them as is.
For anyone who loves a vintage look in their decor, this is the easiest and fastest way to decorate old books and use them in your decor.
painting books
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Painting book covers is another permanent way to alter books and make them fit in with your décor. I have painted hardcover books, linen books and modern paperbacks, it all works. Of course, don’t do this with real old books, but let’s face it, no one will care if you splash a little paint on an old copy of the reader’s digest.
Wondering how to paint books to decorate and what kind of paint to use on the books? well, it’s easy. you can basically use any paint on a book cover. but I have some recommendations. try to find a paint that has excellent coverage and dries quickly. most books have colorful covers, and especially when you want to make decorative white books, you don’t want to have to paint them a million times. I have used mineral fusion paint with excellent results. two very light colored champlain covers were enough to cover a very bright green book. I’ve also heard good reviews of the coverage of this chalk-like paint for book covers.
I like to use a somewhat stiff brush when painting books. the bristles of a stiff brush will make lines on the smooth surface of the book. I use it to my advantage by painting the first layer lengthwise and the second layer of paint on the sides. that way I almost get a fabric-like texture on my painted book.
Make sure your painted books have had enough drying time before using them in your décor or they could stick together when you stack them.
wrap books in paper
A non-permanent way to decorate your books is to wrap them in paper. There are two basic ways to wrap books for decoration. The easiest way to decorate a book is to create a new paper dust cover. simply cut your paper to the exact height of the book and with enough extra to fold it around the cover and you’re good to go. this way you can cover a book without tape. especially when you are going to use the books with the back exposed but the front and sides hidden, this is perfect. you can change the look of your book in seconds.
The second way to wrap books for decor is by creating a new cover from paper. Wrap the book on all sides and use glue or tape to create smart edges and corners. If your childhood was any like mine, you might have already covered hundreds of books this way in your school years.
To cover old books with paper you can let your imagination run wild. colored wrapping paper can give you the exact color and pattern. plain brown wrapping paper or white craft paper can turn your book into the perfect neutral accessory. You can even use old letters, wallpaper, sheet music, or newspapers. anything goes.
make a fabric cover for your book
For the more astute among us, there is always the possibility of sewing a bespoke fabric cover for a book. the possibilities with fabric are as endless as with paper.
Alternatively, you can also wrap the book in fabric just as you do with paper. It might be better to actually glue the fabric to the book (I used ModPodge to glue my linen and burlap to my books) if you don’t want it to slip off. But if you don’t like to permanently alter the books wrapping the fabric around it might work too.
DIY designer book decoration
I hope I’ve convinced you that you can let your inner interior designer run wild when you use his “best kept” design secret: decorating with books. Whether you’re decorating bookshelves, your coffee table, or adding interest to a side table or mantelpiece, there are plenty of ways to use books in your decor. stack m, sort the books by color, alter the books and cover or paint them, use the books as a neutral background or as a colorful focal point. however, whenever you use old or new books in your decorating or DIY projects, I’ll cheer you on!
All book and decor lovers unite!
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