CRAFT-Book Purse

I got the idea of doing a book purse after watching it done on the Carol Duvall Show. It was such a novel idea I had to try it.



Libraries are always selling their old books for next to nothing. I purchased this out- of- date encyclopedia volume for $1.00.

This first one was to be pretty much an experiment. I used whatever I already had around the house.

The wider the spine, the more room you’ll have in your purse. That's why I chose the encyclopedia. If you’re thinking you can haul around all of your usual junk, forget it. This is strictly a conversation piece used for fun, light hearted events. It should hold the essentials, keys, cell phone, lipstick.

The fabric inside was leftover from a previous project. I didn't have enough for the side vents so I used clear vinyl that was also a leftover from a previous project.

I carefully removed the pages with an exacto knife paying special attention to NOT cutting the spine cover. If the cover is cut, you’ve cut the bottom of your purse. Throw it out, get another book and start over.

I followed the directions at Wikihow.com They’re great but I believe the cardboard on the side makes it too thick and takes away some of the space in the purse.

I also wasn’t pleased with the way the glue oozed through.

Michael’s had the chains for 98 cents. I bought only one because Michael’s sells out quickly when it has a rare bargain. I used rivets purchased from a leather shop to attach the chain handle. You can see that the closure is a button and a loop of ribbon.

I sealed it with transparent decoupage glue.

The price of purse handles has to be the priciest thing about this project though I lucked out in this case. The acrylic, plastic, beaded handles are a bit pricey.

There are numerous sites that offer directions for these book purses or sell them ready made. Here are just a couple.

scribbit

makeitandtakeit

My favorite is rebound-designs

THAT'S IT***