Plan a Book Party
Are you looking for things to do with old books—those you don't read anymore, but can't bear to get rid of? Invite them to a book party!
Most of the clutter in my house comes from books—lots of books. We have paperbacks, hardbacks, novels, reference books, kids' books, grown-up books. There’s a stack of books in almost every room. So I took that clutter and put a cute spin on it with this theme party idea.
I put together a party with the books as the center of attention, used as up-cycled decor and party favors. Want to join the party? Follow me right this way.
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Book Party Time The book crafting trend is hot right now. This fun and easy book theme party will delight your guests. |
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Gather a few basic supplies
Book paper, with its creamy ivory background and crisp black words, matches perfectly with almost any other color scheme. For my party, I paired book pages with a line of paper I recently bought from Stampin' Up called "Twitterpated." The paper features shades of turquoise, light pink, apple green, and gray. It has a slightly antique feeling with florals and art deco design. I used it almost exclusively in making my party decorations and favors, along with some simple alphabet stickers, a few buttons and baker's twine.
The Supplies
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Book-Paper Pinwheels Supplies: patterned paper (book pages) • flower punch (Stampin' Up!) • buttons • medallions by Kelly Jeppson |
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For decorations, I used pages from a trashy detective novel my mom gave me and made simple, yet striking, medallions. If you can fold a paper fan, you can construct one of these accents that can either hang singly or be strung on twine for a garland:
- Fan-fold one sheet of book paper, starting at the longest side and folding every 1/2 inch. When you have finished, fold the sheet in half (just like you would if you were making a child's fan).
- Fan-fold six to eight sheets per medallion, just the same way.
- When you are finished, simply use a glue stick to adhere all the fans together and make a medallion shape.
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You can embellish however you like. You can even use a punch to make holes around the outside, or use shaped scissors to create different edges.
For my own take on the traditional party banner, I used a few more book pages and cut them into long rectangles. I folded these in half and cut the ends to form pennants. After adding some labels punched from patterned paper and my favorite alphabet stickers in basic black, I had a cute little banner that I strung on twine between two wooden skewers. You could also make a larger version if you wanted to hang it in a larger space.
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Book Paper Bunting Supplies: patterned paper (Stampin' Up!, book paper) • alphabet stickers (American Crafts) • label punch (Stampin' Up!) • twine • banner by Kelly Jeppson |
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If you would like to make a little noise at your party, dress up boring noisemakers and blow-outs with a few scrapbook supplies. I covered my party horns with patterned paper, using washi tape and a glue stick hold it all together. I also tore out a few more book pages and fringed them with scissors to mimic the effect of the plastic fringe already on the horns. And I was happy to find that book-paper fringe can be curled (carefully!) much the same as curling ribbon, using scissors and light pressure. A little hot glue to attach the fringe, and you have grown-up noisemakers!
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Festive Noisemaker Cut and curl some book-paper fringe to decorate an existing noisemaker for a fun touch! |
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Festive Noisemaker 2 Supplies: patterned paper (Stampin' Up!, book pages) • washi tape (Making Memories) • party horns by Kelly Jeppson |
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The Favors
What party would be complete without party favors? I made some simple, tiny scrapbooks out of patterned paper scraps and used book pages as both the cover embellishments and the inside pages of the books. These would be perfect for tiny photos or a list of favorite quotes or books. I used roughly half of a book page, folded in half, for the inside pages, and cut the patterned paper covers a bit larger on each side. You could simply staple the center of each book to hold it together, or do as I did, and stitch them with a sewing machine. Add as many embellishments to the cover as you like - I was especially pleased with my attempts to pleat strips of book paper to make ruffles. I used hot glue to hold everything together.
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Book-Page Favors These mini book favors are a great way to share your love of book crafting at your book theme party! |
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Book-Page Favors 2 Supplies: patterned paper (Stampin' Up!, book pages) • washi tape (Making Memories) • label punch (Stampin' Up!) • buttons • thread • sewing machine • tiny books by Kelly Jeppson |
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The Treats
After whipping up these simple decorations and favors, all you need to do is get your hands on some yummy treats and invite a few friends over to enjoy the fun! Book club, baby shower, birthday party—these book-inspired projects will be welcome at any gathering. So next time you’re looking for things to do with old books, put on your party hat and plan a celebration!
Kelly Jeppson is a freelance writer and mom who spends her days thinking up new ways to use the stacks of books in her home. You can find more of her ideas and layouts at www.writeclickscrapbook.com, where she’s a contributor.