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    Home » Repurposed Items » How to Make a Repurposed Books Lamp in 10 Easy Steps!

    How to Make a Repurposed Books Lamp in 10 Easy Steps!

    Published by Gail | Published June 26, 2015 | Updated April 9, 2019
    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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    It's Angie here, and I'm excited to be back to share another tutorial with you this month! I love being able to keep old, unwanted books out of the landfill, so books are some of my favorite things to recreate with. I'm going to show you how to make your own repurposed books lamp! The fun thing about this project is no two turn out the same. You can use 1 large single book, or several smaller ones. You can select books that have complimentary colors, or all one color, or books with titles you like.

    Consider what room you plan to use the lamp in, to help you choose the colors, or the personality of the person who will be using it, to help you select the titles for the lamp.

    I often buy whole boxes full of old books at auctions, or load up when our local library has a book sale to get rid of books, so I usually have quite a few to choose from.

    The 2 books I selected for this lamp both have green in them, and have gold embossing on them.

     

    repurposed books light 1



     

    Supplies Needed:

    discarded hardcover books

    lamp rewire kit - I get mine from Vintage Wire and Supply Co.

    screws ( just a bit shorter than the thickness of your books)

    clamps (I prefer Quick-Grips)

    cordless  screwdriver

    drill and bit

    porcelain ceiling utility light

    strain relief

    plastic lid

    This repurposed books project takes less than an hour to complete, so let's get started!

     

    clamp your book(s) tightly together.

    repurposed books lamp

     

     Partially screw in 4 screws, on the bottom side of your stack of repurposed books.

    repurposed books lamp tutorial

     

    Make sure a clamp is positioned right next to the screw before you finish screwing each one all the way in.

    repurposed books lamp

     

     

    TIP - If the clamp isn't right next to the screw, this is what happens - the book gets pushed apart.

     

    repurposed books

     

     Add a few more screws on the top side of the stack of repurposed books.

    Make sure to position the screws where they will be hidden underneath the ceiling utility light when it's added, so the screws won't be visible.

    Place the utility light on the top of your stack

    So you can get an idea of where the cord will go through the books, place the light on the stack of repurposed books. Now select a drill bit that is just a little wider than your lamp cord, and drill a hole into the side of one of the books. Position your camps closely together before drilling, so the book pages will be "solid" to drill through. Make another hole through the top of the stack of repurposed books. You want to make sure the hole on top matches up with the hole on the side, creating a tunnel for the lamp cord.

    book light

     

    Feed the cord through the hole on the side and up through the top of the book stack.

    book light tutorial

     

    Cut a circle from a plastic lid that is slightly smaller than the utility light base.

    This will act as a spacer between the utility light and the books. books lamp 10

     

    Insert the spacer over the cord

    Then attach two ends of the lamp cord to the light bulb socket. You'll need to strip just a bit off the ends of the cord, to expose the wire inside, then wrap each side of the wire around the screw and tighten it (the utility light should come with instructions for this step as well). Wrap some electrical tape around the two sides of the cord to keep them together. books lamp 11

     

    Add the utility light housing

    Screw it in place on the top book. Where the cord "exits" the repurposed books, you'll add a strain relief. book lamp tutorial

     

    Attach the plug

    The final step is to attach the plug at the end of the cord, and you're done! vintage electric plug

     

    An old-fashioned Edison style bulb looks great with this type of repurposed books lamp, but any bulb that is rated for the utility light will work fine. repurposed books light

     

    This style of lamp is perfect in the living room on a side table, or in the bedroom on a nightstand. Wouldn't one of these be cute for a child's room, using vintage children's books?! upcycled book light

    Here are a few other repurposed books/book page projects I've made in the past.

    Coat Rack

    Repurposed Books Coat

    Christmas Stockings Hanger

    repurposed books stocking hangers

    Book Page Wreath

    book page wreath

    Thanks for joining me for this month's tutorial! I'll see you again in July!

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    Follow along with me!

    Blog |Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram | Twitter

    See more of Angie's projects here

    See more repurposed light ideas here

     

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    About Angie

    Angie loves celebrating farmhouse style! She shares easy DIY project ideas, repurposed vintage decor and printable antique graphics and more at knickoftime.net

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    1. Brian

      June 29, 2015 at 11:45 am

      Hi, some nice ideas, though I am strangely uncomfortable about using old books!! Logically they would probably be incinerated or put in landfill otherwise and some of these great ideas do preserve the original artwork etc. Hehe, I seem to have persuaded myself.

      Reply
      • gail@myrepurposedlife.com

        June 29, 2015 at 1:02 pm

        yes, repurposing any old item is better than throwing it out. 🙂

    2. Amanda

      June 28, 2015 at 3:37 pm

      Whoa this lamp is all sorts of crazy amazing, love it!
      Such a unique use for old books, definitely an idea to be used later, thanks for sharing

      Reply
    3. Kim

      June 27, 2015 at 10:55 pm

      Gail...do you ever relax? Awesome stuff but you are the first blogger I've followed who just keeps putting it out....
      Not a bad thing but I worry lol. You are awesome girl!
      Kim

      Reply
    4. Shelley

      June 27, 2015 at 9:25 pm

      I like it

      Reply
    5. Mindi

      June 26, 2015 at 3:54 pm

      Such a fun idea! I also love all your other repurposed book ideas, so cleaver!

      Reply
    6. Bliss

      June 26, 2015 at 9:08 am

      That's cute and reminds me why I always think I should pick up the books in the free piles at sales.

      Reply

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    Hi, there! I’m Gail Wilson, the author and mastermind behind My Repurposed Life. I’m obsessed with finding potential in unexpected places and believe that with a little hard work and imagination, any old thing can be made useful again—myself included! I hope you’ll enjoy the journey and pick up a few tools along the way… literally!

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