I love old books and I hate empty walls – so this seemed like the perfect project. It’s incredibly simple, yet the impact is quite unique and feels very custom…not at all like the few dollars it actually takes to make.
MATERIALS
First, let’s talk about the book itself. As I said, I love books, so don’t go cutting up some old classic that could be providing knowledge for future generations. However, it is a perfect use for damaged or out of date books, I like them with faded pages and a close together font so it acts as a good backdrop for the print. Once you’ve found it, carefully use a utility knife to cut out the pages (mine was actually falling apart so the pages just came out in my hands). So…that being said, what you’ll need is:
Book pages
Frame
Printer paper
Computer and printer
Scotch tape
STEPS
Find the images you’d like. I Googled “etchings clip art free” and found lots of free images to use. You can also try searching “lithographs”, I found some good things using that as well. Mine were all random images, but you could certainly have a floral theme, or a circus theme, or an insect theme….you get the point.
Once you’ve found your images, print them out. You can play around with the image size in the print options to get them to the size you want. Just print them on regular 8.5 x 10 paper, don’t worry if your book pages are smaller.
Set your printout on the table and lay your book page over it, right side up. Use the printed image to help decide placement. I centered some, put some as if they were flying off the page, etc. It may help to hold the printout and the book page up to a light so you can see through them to get the exact placement. Once you like it, use a small piece of tape at the top of the book page to hold it in place on the printout.
Put the printout back in the printer tray (with the book page attached) and run it through the printer again. The printer will print in the exact same position as last time, but this time on top of your taped down book page.
Carefully remove the tape and put your print into a frame.
Now you can look bookish and stylish…all at the same time.
