It’s that time of year again when all you want to do is go to the beach, but you can hear the school bell ringing in the distance.  It’s time to polish black shoes, buy new uniforms and cover school books and folders.  Here’s a quick and funky DIY to get your kids wanting to cover their own books.

• You’ll need some lovely wrapping paper, double sided tape, scissors (or cutting mat and cutter), some washi tape and something to label the books, I simply printed them from my computer, you can get fancier if you wish!

• Roll out enough wrapping paper to place an open book on, cut the wrapping paper a little larger than the open book or folder, about 3cm each edge.

• Place double sided tape around the three outer sides of the book (inside the cover).

• Cut the corners off the wrapping paper as shown, this will reduce the bulk when folding the other edges in. Cut little ‘V’ shapes out near the spine of the book as shown.

• Peel of the double sided tape from the outside edge then fold the wrapping paper over it to adhere.

• Make a tiny little fold in the top piece of paper as shown.  Peel off the double sided tape and fold the wrapping paper over to adhere.  Repeat with the bottom.

• Fold the book closed before sticking the back down, as the spine takes up a little paper too and it will be too tight if you don’t allow a little extra.

• Then repeat the process to finish the book.

• Make a label for your book and stick it on with Washi Tape.  You can cover all of this with clear contact to keep the books looking great if you like.  To cover a folder use the same process but allow for the very wide spine and cut two ‘V’ both top and bottom to allow for the front and back of the spine.  Lever Arch Folders have two little openings on the top, cut little slits in the paper to allow for these and use some washi tape to cover the holes up, it takes a little fiddling but it looks cute if you use a contrasting tape.

• You can even cover your pencils with the same paper, cover only about half the pencil though so you can still sharpen it. Covering this with contact is a great idea to keep it looking good and stop the paper from ripping as they are being used.

Don’t forget to take an apple for your new teacher and study hard!

Kate x