How to Make an End Table Made of Books

For the book lover, there's nothing more sublime than being surrounded by stacks and stacks of books. If you fall into this category and can't bear to part with your books, use them to your advantage. Instead of buying end tables for your library or living room, use your extra books to create them. This type of table will not only be becoming in your space, it'll also reveal something about you. You can learn a lot about people by the types of books they like to read and the furniture with which they surround themselves. This satisfies both elements. Does this Spark an idea?

Instructions

1

Gather assorted books. Choose books that have a common color or theme and sort by size. It isn't necessary that the books match one another. However, if you have a room or color theme going and would like to enhance it with your books, unifying them with design or color is an easy way to do it. Additionally, look for books that run about the same size; they'll be easier to stack.

2

Place the thicker books on the bottom and start stacking. Although you want the books to be about the same circumference in terms of square size, some books will be heavier than the others. Having the heavier books on the bottom not only lends to the stability of the table, but it'll be easier on your books. While you do have the option of buying some second-hand books that you won't read again, you may want to read the books you're using for this project again. That being the case, the heavier books will handle the weight of other books being on top of them.

3

Bind the books together once you have a stack of books fitting the height you need. You can do this a number of ways, from reusing old belts to finding some binding twine. It depends on what your decorating style is. Binding the books tight will give the table more stability.

4

Make two or three more stacks of books of the same height and bind them together. Position the stacks of books together so that there's either a three- or four-legged arrangement. It's very important that the books stand at the same height; otherwise you'll have a wobbly table. If you're being challenged by this problem, try mixing in thin and thick books together until each book stack is the same. Once the books stand at the same height, bind the stacks to one another with your belts, twine or other binding materials.

5

Lay a sheet of Plexiglass, wood or even a larger book on the very top to create a tabletop. If you place a larger book on top, you'll want to place something on top of it like a cloth or board to protect the cover of the book.

6

Test the table's stability by laying items on it to make sure that it will hold the items you need it to. If you find that the table is still wobbly, and it's not from the stacks of books being uneven, then try to make the base wider. Take apart the binding and place a few books in between all the stacks to make them stand apart further. Bind them back together when you're done.