Skip to main content

Missy's Book Cover

Email share
by
Missy Maxwell
• Published on • Last modified on
PBS KIDS Utah

Hello! It’s Missy here again with a fun back-to-school project. When I was a kid, we would cover our hardback books and textbooks with brown paper from grocery bags. That way we could doodle all over our books and not get in trouble! I’m going to teach you how to make one of these covers.

Supplies

Filer image
  • Brown paper grocery bag
  • A hardcover book
  • Tape
  • Pencil
  • Crayons
  • Scissors

Instructions

  1. Pull apart the grocery bag so it lays flat on the table.
  2. Use your scissors to cut off the bottom section of the bag.
  3. Lay your book in the middle of the bag and all the way over to the right. Make pencil marks at the top and bottom of the book.
  4. Make a fold at each of those lines. Now the paper should be long and the height of your book.
  5. Place your book on the paper with about 5 inches sticking out on the right edge.
  6. Fold those 5 inches towards the book.
  7. Now there is a kind of pocket. Slip the back cover of the book into that pocket. Use some tape to hold it in place.
  8. Now wrap the paper around the book, with it closed, and make a crease at the front cover edge.
  9. Open the book and slip the front cover into the second pocket you just created.
  10. Tape it inside the front cover to hold it in place.
  11. When the book is closed, the cover should be tight around it. When it is open, it will be a bit more loose.
  12. Now you can decorate your book with crayons or anything else you like!

Wrap Up

Using this book cover technique not only gives you a fun surface to draw on, it protects your books. You can cover any hardcover book like this. Be creative and have fun!

Filer image
Filer image