Recycle a Book Into a Journal

This is a start of a journey on the creation of a journal from a found book.  I tend to go to resale shops/goodwill and buy things.  One of my favorite purchases are books - not to read but for art.  A couple of weeks ago I was walking out of a store and the lady who walked out with me asked me what book I had bought to read.  I told her I was not going to read the book, I was going to use the pages for drawing on.  I bet she was surprised by that answer.  But I digress.

Many people will buy books and make them into journals.  I have decided to do that.  I have just started the process and want to give you some ideas.  Maybe you will join me on the creation of your own journal.

I found a cookbook at Goodwill.

What I liked abut this book is that is a loose leaf book.  You will have room to create on your pages and turn the pages.  It is easy to remove pages so that you have more room in your book to put thick things.

To prep the cover, I will sand it.  It had a shine to the cover so I didn't think the paint would stick to it too well.  A layer of Gesso will be added after it has been prepped.  At that point you will be able to make it beautiful.

See the center of the book and how easy it will be to remove pages or to turn your pages after you have created your journal entries.

I have removed a few of the pages from the journal to add some extra room.  I plan to glue two pages together so that I have a stronger surface for each journal page.

Why don't you join me on this fun creative journey.  Find a book and start to alter it.  Hopefully I will be back next month with an update on how my new found recycled journal is coming along.

Happy creating.