Old books (and a corner) transformed…<$40

Text - Permalink

Old books (and a corner) transformed…<$40

My parents have volumes of 1972 encyclopedias that, unsurprisingly, nobody anywhere wants. Except me. I had a dead corner in my apartment. Nothing in it but an ugly, broken Ikea floor lamp I found on the street. So I took those old books off their hands, as well as a terracotta pot, a small (ugly brown) table, and a sweet lamp — a little bit of paint and paper all around — and presto, corner’s got a whole new vibe.

You need:

Old thick hardcover books
Paint (I used what I had lying around: spray paint, chalkboard paint, acrylic paint)
Brush or roller (if canned paint)
Gloves & mask (if spray paint)
Awesome paper
Tape (I used double-sided)
Ruler & pencil
Scissors

Want to see the steps?

Costs = <$40:

(The only thing I bought new for this was the paper, so for me, more like <$10.)

Spray paint = $6.95
Chalkboard paint = $19.98 (I bought this can forever ago)
Acrylic paint = $3.19
Awesome paper = 3 sheets @ $2.69 each
Everything else = free or already available around the house

How to:

First, I used left-over spray paint on the books. I only had enough to coat two books twice.

Next, I moved on to paper. I measured, cut, folded, then secured the paper with double-sided tape. I used 3 different gorgeous papers on 3 books.

For my remaining books, I used leftover chalkboard paint. 2 coats were plenty. I love the black matte look on these book covers!

Now for the mini-table. Great shape, but an ugly uncommittal brown. Since I’m swimming in chalkboard paint, I opted for that as the base. Then I added some grey detail on the legs (you’ve seen that look everywhere lately, I know) - just some acrylic paint I have. If you measure out a piece of paper as the length of the desired leg detail, it’s easy to keep it constant and tape off with precision.

I also painted a little terracotta plant pot in the chalkboard paint to make it blend. And so now I have a great corner where before there was nothing. An orange CFL bulb makes the corner glow funky at night.