To me there’s nothing quite as lovely as a pile of vintage books. I adore decorating with their muted, aged colors. The palette is both vintage and decidedly modern all at once.
For today’s centerpiece I used two vintage hardcover books I found at the Melrose Place Flea Market last week. I chose these titles based purely on the aesthetics of their covers, but when selecting books for your centerpieces, it’d be great to look for titles that mean something to you as a couple.
To create the table numbers, I found these great trophy style julep cups at the market. Using a simple sharpie marker I drew the table numbers on each. Easy as pie.
To create your vessel, stack the books how you’d like them to sit. Play with the amount of books and their placement atop each other. Liberally glue the books together and let dry over night (epoxy works best). Then, with the same 2” Forstner bit we used earlier in the week, drill down into the top book abut 2-3”. Plant a medium succulent into that hole.
Just like that you’ve got a beautifully unique centerpiece made from vintage books!
20 comments
Cute idea and so simple!
Lovely! By the way, I’m a subscriber with Google Reader and the pictures never show up in your posts. Just thought I’d like you know.
What a fun idea! I love the idea of using books that mean something to the couple – and they could be reused later
Cute. I hope to use books as my centerpiece – but isn’t this destructive and most definitely not eco-friendly? Your only option after the wedding would be to throw the whole thing out. The same effect could hopefully be achieved without gluing together and drilling through beautiful used books.
When I first saw this I immediately thought — YES, so cute, but when I realized the books had to be destroyed it just kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I agree with Stephanie — there’s got to be better way to do this. Tolstoy is turning in his grave.
Noooo! No hurting books!!! Every bibliophile the whole world over is crying right now. Why not just remove the dirt and roots from the succulent and just place it on top of your stack of books. If it’s dry, it won’t hurt the books, they won’t have to be glued together, and not only can you replant the succulent after the event, the books will still be usable/readable, too!
no need to get your knickers in a twist! these centerpieces were created using vintage books to create LASTING planters. the intention is not to use them for a wedding and toss them in the trash. That should never be the idea regardless of the materials. Instead, these books – as a planter – will take a permanent place in your home and the homes of your lucky guests following the wedding as decor. I love books and cherish my own collection, but with the incredible number of books that get tossed in the trash every year, i see nothing wrong with finding a new use for them and a new way to enjoy their beauty.
The Sharpie number is just hum drum, doesn’t feel polished
This is really nice. Lots of character and you can talk over it- I love it! Thanks so much I’ll be linking.
Ingenious and beautiful! A great conversation piece and a fantastic way to renew something that would be throw away. I dig your work and appreciate what you are doing…….this is not Farenheit 451so everyone should relax.
Hmm. I don’t get it. Succulents in books? And not just any books — books that have been glued together and drilled through. Pardon my pun, but I’m not on the same page.
I have to agree with the majority here. I like the concept but the actual execution (only because this involves literature) just doesn’t seem successful. There really wasn’t a need to glue or drill, the same look could have been achieved without those steps. Maybe if the books had been found in the trash, this would have been a more justified reuse of them. But I think the best reuse of all would have been to donate them to a local school or library and do this project with something less polarizing. The concept is great though and different. I would love to be at an event where these were center pieces (sans glueing and drilling, of course).
Definitely a bit sad that just wonderful books had to die. Vintage Joyce?!
I can understand the horror at altering the books, but really… there are tons of old books sitting around in junk shops, flea markets, and antique stores. And while Allie’s suggestion of donation to a school or library is a nice gesture and might be relevant in another situation, schools and libraries are dealing with limited shelf space, and unless an older book is important or one that maintains its relevance (i.e. literature, rather than a biology textbook), it’s likely to be replaced with books that are in better condition and of more use to their patrons. A better idea might be to look at library book sales for old books, that way, you’re donating to the library and acquiring books that you know they don’t have the room for anymore.
But really, my fiance bought a 1920s book on speech path. for a friend in that discipline, and while it might be neat to flip through, it’s more of a decorative item celebrating her area of study. Why not plant something in it?
I don’t get it.
I love this idea. We used vintage books as centerpieces in our wedding. We had lots of fun collecting them (and even found some funny titles like “Bride of Fortune”). Instead of making them into a planter, we included a small vase of flowers with them, so no book destruction, though I don’t really MIND creative used for old books. There’s a pic on our photog’s blog here of how we did ours, if anyone’s interested
: http://thenicholsblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/sj-details-group-1.jpg
Beautiful centerpiece. My fiancé and I have been collecting books (even before we were engaged) and plan to use them on our tables. As a Lit major, however, I do have to agree. Don’t destroy the books!
Also, does that mean you drilled through your copy of Finnegan’s Wake? If that book is still in tact, I would buy it from you…It’s my fiancé’s favorite.
This centerpiece can easily be done without using glue and drill. (I actually don’t understand why it’s needed) Anyway, a suggestion would be tying the books with ribbon, twine, etc.; which would also add to the details of the centerpiece.
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Often times older books have not been stored properly and are damaged or otherwise not suitable to incorporate into a home library (fungi and mold). In these instances, it would be perfectly fine to upcycle such a book into another usable form. Seriously folks, not every single book is worth salvaging. Also, someone mentioned being unimpressed with using the magic marker on the julep cup; there are dozens of stick on numerals available at craft stores everywhere which would give a more polished look.