DIY Book Christmas Tree
If your library is a little too overcrowded, this Christmas is your chance to turn that problem into an opportunity. Try a bit of creativity with this DIY transformation of a hardback book into a small Christmas tree. In this tutorial you will learn how to fashion the basic tree, but you are encouraged to carry on the technique to baubles, tinsel, stars and fairies decorations. Make sure you have:
• one old book that you’re never going to read anyway;
• one pencil or pen;
• one sharp craft knife;
• some masking tape;
• some old paper;
• some green spray paint;
Start by opening the book to the inside of the cover page. From the top of the book close to the spine, ending at the bottom of the book at the corner, draw a zigzag shape with the use of the pen or pencil.
Take the sharp craft knife and start to cut from the top and spine to bottom and loose edge. Let the knife do the work. Cut only through a few pages at a time, not the entire book at once. It won’t work, even if you have a Samurai sword at your disposal.
Keep cutting with patience and determination. It might be easier to cut from the apex of each V shape, rather than trying to trace the entire shape in a single try. Don’t get too excited and cut all the way through the covers! So, the desired final shape we are looking for is a tree – when you open the book – and an unreadable pile of pages in the same time.
Use the spray paint to give your tree a nice green color. You can now place it as a table display, use it instead of a Christmas card (this is the case for smaller books, of course), or as your center-piece decoration for this year’s Christmas.
