Upcycling Old Book Covers into Custom Art Pieces
If you have a collection of old books gathering dust on your shelves, this is YOUR project this weekend.
Want to give them a new life while adding a touch of personal touch? In this tutorial today, I’ll show you how to transform those tired old book covers into stunning custom art pieces using thrifted items you can find at home.
With just a few simple steps, you can give a new life into to your books and create unique decorative pieces that reflect your style.
Materials required:
- Old books with worn or outdated covers
- Second-hand linen scraps (found at thrift stores or in your fabric stash)
- Hot glue gun and glue sticks
- Cricut machine
- Iron-on scraps or vinyl sheets
- Mini Cricut iron
- Scissors
step one: prep your books
Let’s start working on our old book covers, cut the linen fabric scrap to size and using a hot glue gun, apply a thin line of glue along the edges of the book cover and press the linen fabric onto it, smoothing out any wrinkles as you go.
Work one side at a time, folding the excess fabric over the edges and inside, securing it with more hot glue gun.
Step two: Design your custom covers
Now comes the fun part! Use your Cricut design space to design your custom covers for your books. I was very inspired by Bauhaus books, so you can create intricate patterns, typography, or graphic elements to reflect your personal style. Cut out your designs using your Cricut machine and iron-on scraps.
step three: Apply iron-on designs to the books
Carefully position your iron-on designs onto the linen-covered book covers and using a mini iron, apply heat according to the instructions provided with the iron-on material. Press firmly and evenly to ensure a good bond and let it cool for a few minutes.
Can you believe with just a few thrifted items and some vision, you can turn ordinary old book covers into extraordinary custom art pieces that reflect your individual style, high-five, bestie!
