Bibliophile Heaven - Recycled Book Art!

There's a hot trend in fashion and interior design in the past few years for recycling books into wearable art and home decor. If you have used books that aren't donateable to your local library or something you'd like to pass along to your friends/relatives, there are so many great ideas to repurpose them into items you'll use.

This past year I completed my first recycled scrapbook using mostly recyclable materials for decorating as well. It was the easiest scrapbook I've completed and affordable because I didn't need to buy paper inserts for premade books. I decoupaged the cover to make it personal, but left some of the original cover showing:

These are just a few of my pages to give you an idea of what you can do with a recycled book:

If you're not into scrapbooking or journaling, there are plenty of other uses for your unwanted books. I'm going to share a few of my favorite links I found on the Internet.

You can make a functional purse from a book. This is great for anyone into retro items. You could do Nancy Drew or Wonder Woman or anything you can get your hands on! I watched the video and the instructions are very easy to follow. There is some minimal basic sewing involved, though.

http://www.videojug.com/webvideo/how-to-make-a-handbag-out-of-a-recycled-book

If you're not fashion-inclined, you could make a functional lampshade for your house. I want one of these, but have to figure out where I would put it.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Recycle-lamp-shade/

Another decorating idea is a recycled paper mirror. You've probably seen these online or in the store for ridiculous amounts of money, but you can make them cheaper with a little bit of labor. This past year I saw a different version of this one at the Earthbound Trading Company.

http://www.creativejewishmom.com/2010/05/make-a-recycled-book-page-sunburst-mirror.html

For the holidays, I found this amazing recycled book Christmas tree, which makes the perfect centerpiece or table tree for those in cramped living quarters.

http://www.gagazine.com/how-to-make-a-recycled-book-christmas-tree/

If you're not into the holidays, perhaps you like gardening! You could try making this nifty planter for an indoor plant. It's the perfect accessory for crazy bibliophiles everywhere.

http://curbly.com/chrisjob/posts/8806-curbly-video-make-an-planter-from-a-recycled-book

For more ideas or to find places to shop for items if you don't want to craft, check here:

http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/recycled-books-as-art-10-innovative-creations

http://www.etsy.com/teams/6756/the-alchemical-codex-society-book

As always, happy writing and happy reading! And happy crafting to bibliophiles everywhere!