Put that Used Book to Work

When I stopped by my parent's house this week to drop off my craft show display - thanks for the free storage, mom and dad :) I found my mom sorting through a stack of old cookbooks. Most were fairly modern, of the Betty Crocker, grocery store check-out aisle variety, but there were a few vintage gems. Unfortunately once she found out I was interesting in tearing them up for craft projects instead of perfecting my chocolate-chip cookie recipe I could only get her to part with one of these vintage gems. It has some very fun 60's era children's illustrations, so look forward to new items coming from this fun piece soon.

In the meantime, I got to thinking of other fun projects to do with used books, whether vintage or just that accidental third copy of The Da Vinci Code you have hanging around. My followers will know I'm a fan of painting on book pages, perserving all their stained, aged goodness - along with their literary history. But there are tons of different projects that involve books, here are just five used book projects from our friends at Earth911. Projects 1 and 2  are perfect starting points for holiday decorations - try painting the pages (the spray variety will work fine, if you aren't feeling that artsy) in fall or winter colors before starting the project. Your friends will be amazed and jealous of your craftiness!