Hello there!
I have a BUNCH of cozy and thrifty ideas for Fall to share but I had to share this one first!
I love to read, and I love books, I love vintage books as well….but they are not as affordable as they used to be, have you noticed?
Before I forget, I would love it if you pinned this project to your favorite Pinterest boards, thank you for sharing!
Wanting to incorporate a few bundles of vintage books around our home I realized quickly that one, this could take a while and I want to use them for fall decor. And two, I am more of a 50-cents-a-book-at-a-yard-sale kind of gal.
Don’t get me wrong, I love history, and all things chipy, rusty, worn, dog-earred and faded.
But, sometimes, you can dupe a vintage for a song.
Who doesn’t love a song, or in this case a stack of “vintage” books for a few dollars?
I have a hard time paying full price for anything that I think I could possibly make myself. Born with the “how hard can it be” gene I love to see what I can make on my own.
This is a super easy project that you can complete in a couple hours (only due to the dry time for the paint) but longer if you don’t have a warm place for the book pages to dry. It was over 100 degrees this week so boy did these dry fast.
The only thing you really need is a thrifty source for books, acrylic paint, coffee, wax paper, foam brush and a spray bottle.
I took the covers off the hardbound books I found at you got it, a yard sale. Next I removed the covers and paper binding from the paperback books.
I brewed a cup of coffee and let it cool (but not very much because this part is FUN) spraying coffee with one hand and flipping pages with the other. I made sure all the edges were damp with coffee, and some went inside the page a bit further to get a good wrinkle in those areas.
Using the grounds from my k-cup, rubbing in a bit of the damp grounds on the corners really made the pages look aged!
The paperbacks were ready to go dry in the Sahara aka my backyard this week.
I moved on to the hardbound books doing the same to the pages, but also using a light cream and chestnut color of acrylic paint. I applied it to all areas of the book that you would see when it’s closed, except our lovely coffee stained pages.
After a bit of dry time outside they were ready to come back in. I set them up partially open on their ends overnight to make sure that the pages were totally dry.
Bringing a few fall items I love out to make this grouping on our mantel was so fun. I chose soft, muted colors for the leaves and little pumpkins, leaning towards keeping it neutral and showing off the lovely book pages.
The directions for these washed canvas pumpkins can be found here 🙂 They were also a super easy project and I am so excited to tuck them around our home.
It’s only supposed to be 90 degrees in the Pacific NW today, so basically an artic blast after the heat. The cooler breezes at night when I am watering our garden are so welcome. I love those first hints of fall, planting my fall garden, and that first fall candle being lit.
I hope this finds you having a wonderful week, and a bit of time to fluff your nest and put up your feet today. Perhaps with a good book, or plans to go to that late summer yard sale down the road.
You just never know what you might find, or what might spark inspiration!
Thank you so much for following along friend, you have no idea how much your feedback, ideas and comments mean to me 🙂
Are you using “fall self control” or are you struggling to wait like me?
Until next time, stay cozy & creative- xoxo Tanya
26 Responses
What a great idea to make your own “vintage” books to save money! Thanks for sharing at the #HomeMattersParty.
Thank you so much Allyson! I think I need to make more of them, that stack has already moved around 5 times haha! Hugs- Tanya
An awesome and lovely idea. I visited you via Inspire Me Monday 285
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Thank you so much Esme!! xoxo Tanya
I love decorating with books! You have some great tips here. I’ve used some but others are new to me. Pinning. Thanks for sharing at the Home Imagined linked party. XO- MaryJo
Thank you so much MaryJo! You are so kind, I really appreciate it 🙂 xo Tanya
I LOVE this, Tanya!! I’m going to try this technique the next time I find myself short on vintage books. They are SO hard to find these days and when I do them they are like way more than I want to pay. Thanks so much for sharing at Home Imagined this week!
Hi Rachel! Thank you so much for your sweet comment, I know you love books too, you can never have enough!! Hugs- Tanya
We do this all the time, Tanya, and it’s such a quick and easy way to add patina to books. In fact, we just redid my parent’s entire bookcase using this technique and it was so much fun. Love the way yours came together! Hugs, CoCo
Hi CoCo! Oh my gosh I love the idea of using this technique on something like a bookcase! Thank you so much friend, xoxo Tanya
What a fabulous idea to DIY vintage books if you just want to use them for decor & not collection value! Your early fall mantle looks lovely. I’ll be featuring your post on tomorrow’s Crafty Creators! Congrats, & I hope to see you there!
Thank you Niki! They were so easy to make, I think I need more haha 🙂 xoxo Tanya
I can’t get enough of the vintage look and have a few books needing this! Thank you for sharing it with us on Farmhouse Friday! Featuring it tomorrow. Hope you link up again soon. pinned
Thank you Cindy! You are so sweet thank you and I hope you try it, it’s such a quick project 🙂 thank you again! xo Tanya
Love this Tanya ♥
Thank you for sharing your vintage inspired books DIY at Create, Bake, Grow & Gather party this week. I’m delighted to be featuring it at tonight’s party and pinning too.
Hugs.
Kerryanne
Thank you so much Kerryanne! I really appreciate it 🙂 Hugs- Tanya
Tanya – These books turned out so well! I use old books all the time in my antique booth because they make great risers and really help with display. I will definitely be using this technique in the future. Thank you for sharing this post on the Home Imagined Link Party.
Aren’t books wonderful? I love them too 🙂 thank you so much Anna! Hugs- Tanya
Great vintage-look hack, Tanya. Coffee can be used to DIY so many things;) Yes, I am a bottom feeder, too. I’ve got hoards of old books I picked up at church sales for .50 -$1. Don’t think I’ll ever have enough; they can be used in decor so many ways! My daughter’s started lending them to her friends for their wedding decor:0
That is such a great idea! I am sure her friends appreciate your book hoard very much 🙂 xoxo Tanya
Tanya,
Thriftbooks.com is a great place to shop, good books at great prices. One of my treasures is a very old “Gone With The Wind” it is so very special. It originally belonged to a woman who worked on the movie, either costume or make up I don’t know, she was a friend and then a roommate of my next door neighbor. When the movie was done they had a end of production party, she was gifted the book, the 6 biggest stars all autographed it. It is authentic and was my favorite movie, it was a gift to me from my neighbor before she passed.
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This is such a fun and relatable idea — vintage-style decor without the vintage price tag is always a win. I love the “how hard can it be” mindset, especially when it leads to creative, cozy projects like this. Using simple supplies and thrifted books makes it feel approachable and budget-friendly, which is perfect for fall decorating.
Projects like this are oddly satisfying, kind of like a good run in subway surfers — simple to start, creative in execution, and way more rewarding when you do it yourself.
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