book page canvas tutorial - guest post

We're so thrilled to introduce you to one of our new favorite blogs this week. This girl is the real deal. Her work is masterful and her style is elegant and polished, yet cozy. And she posts weekly about her outfits--LOVE that! Plus, she's in the Seattle area. Hooray for us! Wish I would've known that when she threw this Summer Boutique (please, do another one for me!). This week she's featuring 5 great tutorials in a row, and so far they're all amazing. Please meet Emily of Jones Design Company. She stopped by to share her Book Page Canvas tutorial, which I am totally going to use to make some art for over my piano! Enjoy!

This one is fun and while I’d like to think I made it up, I’m pretty sure it’s out there somewhere else. Again, it is a simple and inexpensive project and makes a delightful gift or custom art.

Here’s what you’ll need

:: a canvas {purchased at any craft store}

:: a book

:: scissors

:: mod podge & paint brush

STEP ONE: tear out pages

I take them from all over the book so that the page numbers and content varies.

STEP TWO: arrange the pages

make sure to overlap the page so that there is enough paper to cover the edge of the canvas

STEP THREE: fill in the little spaces

until the canvas is completely covered

STEP FOUR: glue them down

Gently lift the pages to get the glue under, then press down. This is the trickiest step because the pages are arranged in an overlapping fashion. Just keep lifting and gluing and don’t worry too much about the paper wrinkling or air bubbles – that’s what gives it charm {or at least that is what I tell myself}

STEP FIVE: seal the top of the pages with Mod Podge

STEP SIX: glue the edges

STEP SEVEN: fold over the corners

STEP EIGHT: trim the excess

STEP NINE: glue the pages to the back

Now on to embellishing {although it is perfectly lovely in it’s simple un-embellished state}

Here’s what you’ll need

:: a print out of an image {a bird, in my case}

:: pencil

:: glue

:: paint brush

:: glitter

STEP ONE: select your design, decide how big {or small} you want it and print

There are so many possibilities with this. I did a bird because I’m fully into the trend, but you could do a silhouette of a different animal, a chandelier, a chair, a lamp, etc. If you search in google images for “bird silhouette” or “umbrella silhouette” you should find an image.

STEP TWO: transfer the image to the canvas

scribble on the back of the print-out around the edges of the design

trim the edges

place in desired spot on the covered canvas and trace around the design

pull up the paper and your design will be transferred

STEP THREE: paint in the image with glue

STEP FOUR: glitter

STEP FIVE: brush off the excess

and here it is:

One thing I love about this project {besides the fact that I am crazy about anything using book pages} is that the possibilities are endless.

You can use pages from different books:

as seen in our bedroom:

or sheet music:

as seen over the piano:

silhouettes of your darlings:

paint a monogram:

or embellish with scrapbook paper flowers and ribbon.

How cute would it be to do it with pages of a vintage magazine? Or a favorite children’s book with the word ‘read’ painted on it? Or sewing patterns with a big silhouette of scissors? How about an assortment of maps? Or a cookbook? Now my mind is spinning …

I hope you are as inspired by this as I am!

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