Grab some old hardcover books and brown paper to make this patriotic book stack with a free printable wreath design.
Whip up a cute little 4th of July craft to decorate this summer – using old books.
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Why I Love Decorating with Books
First, I have a book buying problem. So, I always have books on hand that need to be stored.
Second, you can buy books inexpensively at thrift stores, the dollar store, or library book sales. I often score books for just $1 or $2 each.
Finally, the creative possibilities are pretty much endless. You can cover books in fabric to make neutral shelf filler, or you can make a faux book stack to decorate tiered trays. If your books are in bad shape, you can craft with old books – like with these botanical prints on book pages.
Supplies you’ll need for this craft:
- hardcover books, obviously!
- brown kraft paper – I buy rolls at the dollar store, but you could use grocery bags instead
- twine to hold your books together – I used a combination of dollar store brown twine and red-and-white bakers twine leftover from Christmas
- the free printable 1776 wreath – just click the button below to download the printable PDF
A Little Upcycled Patriotic Summer Decor
Here I’ve displayed this patriotic book stack with scrap fabric flags in a glass jar and a watercolor USA map sign made from sheet music pages.
Patriotic Book Stack
Grab some old hardcover books and brown paper to make this patriotic book stack with a free printable wreath design.
Materials
- 5 hardcover books
- Brown kraft paper (or paper grocery bags)
- Painters tape or scotch tape, for covering the books
- 1 sheet of printer paper
- Masking tape, for running the brown paper through the printer - cheap dollar store masking tape works best, so you don't rip the paper
- Glue stick
- Twine
Tools
- Scissors
- Pencil
- Paper trimmer
- Printer
Instructions
- Watch the video tutorial before you begin, and let that be your visual guide for this project.
- Cover each hardcover book in brown paper. Lay a book open on top of the paper, and cut the paper 1-1.5 inches larger than the book in each direction. Begin folding the paper over the book edges, forming light creases. Trim tail ends along the book spine, and then fold the tail ends in. Trim the paper edges along the spine at a 45-degree angle. With the book only partially open, fold in all paper edges and secure with tape.
- Cut a piece of brown paper approximately 7x9-inches. Carefully tape the brown paper to a piece of printer paper with masking tape. Run the taped paper through your printer and print off the free printable (link above).
- Carefully remove the masking tape. Trim the brown paper down to size to fit your book stack.
- Set the paper printable up against the book stack. Use a pencil to make light tick marks between each book. Use these tick marks as a guide to cut the printable into strips with a paper trimmer.
- Apply a generous coat of glue stick to the back of a paper strip. Use your fingers to smooth the paper strip over a book spine. Make sure the right short edge of the paper strip lined up the the bottom of the book spine. Repeat with all the books.
- Cover the paper seam from the printable by wrapping the book stack with twine. Secure with a simple bow and trim the tail ends.
Notes
To get the printable 1776 wreath, just click HERE and then check your downloads folder!
This craft is adorable. You come up with some of the cutest ideas!
I Love all three projects thanks for sharing
Love the book stack. I use them all year long. Some with an Easter theme, others at Christmas or Valentine’s. Love the whole patriotic theme you have going – the little handmade flags, the book stack, the flag in a frame with the wooden sticks and white lace ribbon. They are all cute and easy to do. I will take some of these projects to my crafts with the seniors at a local assisted living home. Thanks so much. I look forward to your easy, but cute decor pieces!
So glad you like the, Barbara! Happy crafting!