One of the parts of my new library job is setting up teen book displays. So far, it's been quite easy: scary books for Halloween, and then a pick of my favorites as a way of introducing myself. Now, though, I'm into thematic seasonal displays, so I thought I'd start off fairly easy with holiday picks.
That was easier said than done. There are simply not that many decent holiday YA books (and my small library owns even fewer). I cobbled together what I could (my favorite being Let It Snow - no really, read it now!), but I wanted to make the display a little more interesting.
Enter the paperback book trees! I have stacks of stripped paperbacks from my bookstore days, saved with the intent to recycle them in crafty ways. What better use than Christmas trees? They're simple to make, especially as a way of keeping your hands busy while watching tv.
I made these in part as an entry in the Pin It and Do It Holiday Challenge, and when I went to the challenge's link up page, I noticed that another bloggy Pam had already posted a fantastic tutorial for these trees. Her pictures are great, so check it out if you're interested in making some. I made one exactly as she shows, and for the second, I didn't fold in the final flap (which doesn't sit quite as well, but I think I like better. It's the one on the left above). Each of my trees is made from a section of 200 pages (100 pieces of paper) from a book - it's really all you need, so you can probably get two trees out of one book. I also lightly painted my finished trees with some glittery green paint.
And finally, for the sign, I jammed two skewers into the centers of the books and tapped my printed sign to them. I like how they look in the display!
