July 22, 2011

Vintage Books, How to Alter and Price


I am sure you have all seen altered books 

 When I showed you on a past post some vintage books that were selling in my booth I had requests to show you how I altered mine. 


So, here ya go!


Pick up some books at the thrift store, they don't have to be really old just look a little worn, certainly not a new book




I rip off the front and side binding, some people rip off the whole hard cover.




At this point you could do like Ballard Design, tie them up with twine and call it a day.


Or you could pull out an interesting page from the book and some old sheet music




Get a graphics from Graphics Fairy and and run the book page or sheet music through your printer




At this point I pull out my rubber stamps and walnut ink 






and kind of mess them up!




I mod podged this altered page onto the front page of the book, then fancy it up and I am finished




I price these between $6 - $10 depending on how fancy they are and which embellishments I use.  


I am still on vacation and having a wonderful time!  Yesterday I spent the entire day going to antique and thrift stores with Deb from Garage Sale Gal...Toooo Fun!  I fly home to Orlando tomorrow night and as soon as I can get my brains together I will show you pictures of our great adventure.  


Happy Crafting!


Carol




38 comments:

Sherry@Back2Vintage said...

Thanks for the tutorial. You always have the greatest ideas and your pricing helps. I'm glad you and Deb had a great time...I'm jealous!!! :)

BECKY said...

Love these Carol! I have some coverless books and may alter 1 or 2 and see how they turn out! Once again...thank you for sharing your lovelies and the how to!! You're a delight!
Have a wonderful Friday and weekend!
Hugs,
Becky

Stampindamour said...

Carol--LOVE the tutorial!!! This has been on my list of projects to try. Can't wait to hear more about your trip. :)

-pamela

Deborah said...

I love this look and you make it look so easy to achieve! unfortunately oldish books are harder to come by here in the UK from charity shops :( Sounds like you are having a great holiday :)

Bee happy x
Have a delicious day!

Linda @ Itsy Bits And Pieces said...

Now this just looks like FUN! Beautiful, Carol...thanks for sharing!!

Anonymous said...

you just live in the most magical world,, so much beauty and so much fun!!

Ceekay-THINKIN of HOME said...

Thanks for the tutorial! I like the idea of the graphic on the music...

Ido said...

I love the look of this book and the tutorial, thank so so much!
Have fun!
XXX Ido

Old Time Cindy said...

Cute...thanks for sharing!

Jedbel @ The Pear Tree Cottage said...

What a great tutorial :) I love the look of these books...
Hope you have a great weekend.

Becky

Debbiedoos said...

Those are awesome Carol! Love all your tips too, you share some good ones.

Sylvia said...

I like the look...

Sylvia

Createology said...

Carol your books are simply lovely. How kind of you to share your techniques. These will make great gifts as I can see not only feminine alterations but also manly ideas and themes. Vacation visions to you...

Ricki Treleaven said...

Carol, they are so pretty. I truly appreciate the tutorial! :D

camp and cottage living said...

Carol
I love your tutorials. This would make a great gift for my sisters. Especially if I personalize them with old photos of them as children. I'm thinking of X-mas in July!
Safe traveling mercies to you!

Sherry @ No Minimalist Here said...

Carol, Your altered books are the absolute prettiest I have seen. Sounds like you are having a fun vacation...enjoy.
xo,
Sherry

Bliss Lissy said...

Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful idea and beautiful designs. I love people (like you) who are so willing to share, especially with awesome tutorials. I could see making these for gifts by adding special touches that make you think of a specific special person for a truly "I made this for YOU!" type of gift. How special would the giftee feel? They would know you truly were thinking of them! Again, many thanks!

Kathy said...

Heavenly, and you an angel for showing us how to do it, your process...I love to see how others create. And you know, in ALL of the art supplies I own, I do not have walnut ink spray...I shall fix that...

Sissie's Shabby Cottage said...

Great job Carol! I love your books.

hugs
Sissie

Unknown said...

Hi Carol, I'm glad you are having fun! Your booth looks great, (I took a peek)!I love your book tutorial and I love doing those myself! Too much fun and one of my favorite things to do! Hugs, stay cool if you can and have a great weekend! Marilou

Unknown said...

Carol,
Your altered books are so pretty! I like how you do them. Have fun on vacay!

Nancy

GARAGE SALE GAL said...

I sure enjoyed our shopping/thrift day and wish we could have done some "crafting"!!
Have a safe trip home and we'll talk soon! The little dresser sold that day!! That was a good investment!
Warmly,
deb :)

Sherrie said...

Beautiful Carol! Thanks for sharing!

Debbie-Dabble Blog and A Debbie-Dabble Christmas said...

Carol,
You are always so generous with sharing your creations and how you make them!! Thanks so much!! I know that I am not the only one who truly appreciates you doing this!!
Have a great vacation and I can't wait to see your pics when you get back!!
How are you weathering the HEAT!!!!

Hugs,
Debbie

Anonymous said...

Glad you are having fun on your vacation! The books are just lovely, so thanks for sharing how to make them. Have a great week!

SueBees said...

You are so clever!! Be back next week....let's do lunch!!!

Anonymous said...

I think your booth is filled with pretty things made by a very talented lady. The stenciled table is great. Really like your blog. Nancy

Jane said...

Hi Carol,
I'm so happy you and Deb had a fun day of shopping together. It's so nice to be able to get together with blog buddies!
To answer your question about the snowmen heads....I gently push the soft clay into the neck of the salt/pepper shaker and typically the head dries firmly attached to the shaker. I have had the occasional head that was loose so I used some glue to adhere it after the clay was dry. The one show I do is a small town craft show so prices have to be pretty reasonable. I had them priced between $5.00 and $8.00 depending on what the base was. I'm glad you bought that bag of salt/pepper shakers. Have fun making them!
Jane

Debbie said...

I am giggling at this post, but you will have to wait to see why. That's all I will say right now. I'm mysterious like that...

Love those books!

Queenie's Vintage Finds said...

OMGosh, Carol I love these! I've just got to find me some old books. Now there probably won't be an old book in site for miles when I go out on the hunt lol! On second thought I probably don't even have to go out to hunt any....I've got some stashed away somewhere in my storage building I'm sure...that I could alter :)
Thanks so much for sharing your tutorial on how you did these....they are gorgeous :)

I'll be back to see your pics from visiting MN and Deb....I was at her blog earlier and it looks like you two had a ball...you two are just dolls, you know that?! I'm glad you two got the chance to meet in person...
Hope you have a great week...
Big hugs,
Queenie

Betsy@My Salvaged Treasures said...

Love the way you dressed these books up. Your prices are amazing too, they'll sell out right away.

Char said...

Carol,
THANK YOU so much. I love these and want to try them.
P.S. Did you ever get the french tissue?
Char

Lina - Fancy Frugal Life said...

Thanks for the walnut ink tip Carol :) I want some old book pages now....I just bought my first vintage suitcase..you'd be so proud!

Lina
Fancy Frugal Life

Michelle Lee said...

love them :)

Barbara Jean said...

Oh I'm lovin' catching up here.
So many great ideas, and you are so generous to show us how to do them.

sweet blessings girl

barbara jean

Unknown said...

Your books are just the cutest and that was a good tutorial. Meanwhile, I have been looking all over for your polka dotted closet ?? Do you really have one ?
I enjoyed reading your posts today.

Elaine said...

Thank you for re-posting the "tute" on this fabulous books. I worked on some journals, but need to get more and fancy them up.

Hope to be in Orlando this summer and get back to the mall. Happy Creating from Elaine of Sisters' Treasures in Texas.

apinkdreamer said...

what a beauty?
where can i buy these wonderful stamps?