Hi Friends!
It has been a minute since I have written a post and I have missed it. With work, moving, kids and life I've had to adjust my priorities. BUT, I have something fun to post about today and I am super excited to share it with you.
We recently moved into a new house and it was so fun to decorate for Christmas it was a winter wonderland in here. Since all of the Christmas stuff is done now things look bare. I am going through each room one at a time and slowly putting things back together. In the living room we had this big empty wall and our beautiful Christmas tree was covering it but since it has been taken down I needed to fill that wall. So I came across a book wall that I saw from Erin from Cotton Stem do, and I fell in LOVE! I am going to walk you through what you need and how I did it. A YouTube video will be coming soon too, so stay tuned!
The Books
I wanted variety and I wanted books that were newer and some that were vintage looking. You want different tones along with textures to create the look! So I went to Goodwill and grabbed so many books for SO cheap! At my Goodwill the hard cover books were $1.49 and the paperbacks were $1.00, kids books were .49 cents! You can't go wrong. I found some that had pictures, some with poems, some with scripture. Just grabbed whatever best reflects your life! I think if you are big into music, music sheets would be so cool too. Just customize it to what best suites you and your family.
The Tools
Everything you need for this project is super easy and affordable and that's one of the reasons I highly recommend it. All you need are finishing nails, big ones to go through the pages and book covers and small ones to tack in the pages. Translucent tape and a hammer. The translucent tapes helps to keep the pages in place and add texture! I got everything at my local hardware store but you can find these things at Walmart, Target, Lowes, Home Depot, etc.
The Centerpiece
So I wanted a centerpiece, something that the books and pages would wrap around. I found this at Hobby Lobby for 40% off! Again, super affordable. Find something that best represents you. It doesn't have to be a quote or a saying, it could be a hanging flat basket, a picture, family portrait or whatever you have that fits your look. This is what I wanted and I am so happy with it.
Where to start
Once you have all of your supplies, books, and centerpiece its time to get started! First you want to center and hang whatever you picked to be your focal point. Then you want to start by going through the books and tearing out some pages that look old, have cool pictures, textures, etc. You can sketch out your idea on paper or if you're like me you bypass that step and just start nailing. Either way you start you want to start the books and pages closest to the centerpiece and work your way outward. I started both sides coming out of the frame first then focused on one side at a time and worked my way out. It helps to do a small section and step back and take a look to make sure you are on the right track. I recommend laying down single pages as a base so you can see your outline plus it gives more texture with the more layers you have. I would rip chunks out and roll the pages, hammer full books onto the wall and one book I loved the color of the cover so I kept that one closed and hung it that way. (Check out YouTube video for up close look)
The finishing touches
Depending on your wall and space you can leave as is or you can add a bench, plant, table, pillows, etc. to tie in the rest of the look. I just used what I had laying around to complete this look and it looks good with or without it!
I hope you enjoyed this post and if you recreate this please tag me on Instagram,
@kaylaanne_flores
See ya next time!
Kayla