Wednesday, July 17, 2013

25 Great Upcycle Ideas for Vintage Children's Books



While thrifting, I not only look for vintage fabrics and notions but I also make a little stop by the kids book section as well. I have a thing for prints- both on paper and on fabric- and if it's vintage, it's gotta be mine! I've collected quite a few books now and decided it was time to actually make something out of them instead of letting them collect dust on the shelf. After all, they're filled with beautiful, bright illustrations just begging to be seen and admired!

So of course, I hit up Pinterest, then Etsy, then Google and Bing just in case I missed any neat ideas and now I've got a little roundup of awesome and unique ideas to upcycle those gorgeous vintage books! You're so very welcome! Enjoy these ideas and one day soon, I'll be featuring something I've made from my own books as well.


1. Check out these chic decoupaged blocks from Mondocherry.


2. Gorgeous paper cabins from Hutch Studio.


3. Paper lantern from Zipper8Lighting on Etsy.


4. Decoupaged letters from Kelle Hampton.



5. Lovely little charms from Primitive and Proper.


6. Embroidery hoop art from Marigold Road.


7. Upcycled notebooks from My Hand Bound Books.


8. Decoupaged jars for gift-giving from The Red Thread.


9. Soap wrapped in vintage kid's book pages from OwlNaturals on Etsy.


10. A collection of H-themed vintage pages from Mondocherry.


11. Pinwheels as party favors/decor from Better Homes & Gardens.


12. Beautiful photo backdrop from Peekaboo Photography.


13. DIY Art Case- isn't this neat??? It even comes with a tutorial from Cosmo Cricket.


14. Adorable vintage book bunting from It's Taylor Made.


15. Decoupaged kids table from Knot Too Shabby Furnishings.


16. Cute DIYcoasters from Needle Book.


17. Storybook lined envelopes from LittlePinkEnvelopes on Etsy.

18. Decoupaged lampshade from Fabulously Flawed Home.


19. DIY envelopes- no known link for this one but it looks easy to do and would be so fun to receive these in the mail, don't ya think?

20. Vintage garlands from PaperPolaroid on Etsy.


21. A vintage book turned into a scrapbook- very neat! From Ordinary Normal.


22. Bright and cheerful storybook collages at Find Make Do.


23. The link to these is no longer available but the idea is from Apples Modern Art on Etsy.


24. I absolutely adore this decoupaged dresser but cannot find the source for it anywhere! But isn't it great eye candy???


25. Decoupaged picture frame from Primitive and Proper.

All these beautiful projects make me want to start tearing up my vintage books right now! I think quite a few of these, if not all, would make fantastic gifts at Christmas time and I'm planning to give about 60% handmade gifts this year instead of buying so I should probably get started soon, huh?

I hope you enjoyed this roundup of unique upcycle ideas for vintage children's books! If you have an idea that isn't featured here, let me know about it!

































10 comments:

  1. I love all of your ideas. Thanks!!

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  2. Thank you for gathering and sharing these great ideas.

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  3. Love these ideas. Thank you.

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  4. They are all cute ideas, I personally can not wrap my mind around destroying a book.. I love the idea for the journal. Such confusion. Lol

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  5. umm...sorry. Any book,especially out-of-print vintage books that are mistreated like this is not beautiful, it is disrespectful and a desecration. It breaks my heart to see the shat presented here. And a piece of history is lost forever. Do something really creative, like start a collection for posterity, now that would be a real contribution.

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    1. You can always photocopy the pages & use that instead of destroying the book.

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    2. There are landfills full of unwanted books. If someone wants to make their damaged old books into something useful that’s none of your business. Get over yourself.

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  6. Thank you so much for sharing

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  7. Very good ideas thank you for sharing.

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  8. So you only show other people's work without links. I wonder why 🤔🤔🤔

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