I have been seeing these book stacks in lots of homes on Instagram. I was going to order some, but kept wondering how difficult it would be to make them. I didn’t do much looking into it at the time though.
A few days ago I was in a flea market that had quite a few of them. One of the ladies was talking to me about how her daughter made them. My biggest question was over how people do the lettering on the sides of them. I guess I just always thought they were harder to do than what they actually were. I am going to be making these for everybody now. They are great for gifts or for your home or if you are wanting to add them to your Etsy store.
While at the flea market, I learned a secret to how to do the lettering. Do you want to know what it is? Stamps. Yes, stamps. Some of you may be going, “Duh! I knew that already!” I honestly had no idea. It never even occurred to me to use stamps. The great thing was there was a booth in the flea market full of stamps from a lady that used to have a card business. So I bought some stamps and then stopped at Hobby Lobby and bought ink. I think I will go with a dark gray or a color that looks a bit more antique rather than dark black next time.
While at Hobby Lobby, I also picked up some jute cord. I know you can find this many places so shop around and see where you can get it the cheapest. Dollar Tree also carries this sometimes. I did not shop around for anything cheaper that day because it had already been a long one so I grabbed the first one I saw. I honestly probably have some of this already from other projects, but I don’t know where it is in my house and didn’t feel like searching. I am hoping that when we get our master bedroom renovation done and our youngest moves into what is currently our room that I can turn his old room into a library/guest room/craft room or make space in the new bedroom for me to work on things. Right now I use my kitchen and it is always a mess.
The next thing I did was get some paperback books from Dollar Tree. Now, you can find cheap paperback books at yard sales and goodwill stores or even libraries when they clean out some of their old books and do fill a bag for .25. I have also seen people cut wood to look like books and even seen hardcover books painted white. The possibilities are literally endless. I have so many ideas for ways to decorate these. You guys need to stay tuned. If you don’t follow me on Instagram already, you might want to!
You can get any books you want to, but make sure they are similar in size for when you stack them. Unless you are wanting to do a stack with different sizes. That is totally up to you. Don’t limit your creativity based on what I say. After I got the books, I gently peeled the covers off. I flipped them over where the bottom side was up on the top book so the top page would be blank. That is also personal preference. Some people like to see words on the top. I just wanted mine blank. Then I had to choose what I wanted them to say.
I also wrapped the jute cord around the books multiple times. I left the starting end long enough to tie around the bow. I have included a short video of how I did the bow. Then I tied it all off. I have seen people use ribbons and other things to accent them. I like simple and these colors and the jute cord fit my farmhouse style.
As you can see, it was nothing fancy. I honestly had never done a bow like that before, but for some reason I tried it the other night when making these, and I like it. Super easy and looks cute.
After you tie it off, you are done. Easy peasy!! The harder part is figuring out where to put them in your house. I have moved them a few times trying to figure out what spot I like the best.
I also have to say that I love this circular wooden sign from Greens Mill . I have moved it around several times because I love it and can’t figure out where I want it to live. I have had it on my front door for a while, and then brought it in to put it in my entry way with this book stack. Isn’t it cute!?! Go check out all their amazing designs. Let them know I sent you!