Bookbags
by Terri
Remember the bookbags you carried back in elementary school? If you were lucky, Mom took you back-to-school shopping for slacks, shoes and a new bookbag to hold all those textbooks. I can’t remember what my last bag looked like. But when I started playing around with discarded textbooks, I knew what my next bookbag could look like.
Long before I bought shoulder bags made from a Guatemalan coffee sack and knitted plastic grocery bags, and way before upcycling or DIY were terms I’d actually heard of, I started making book purses.
Happy to report there are several, new-to-me book purses in production. Here are a few from the archives.
Adventures for Readers Book 1 bag, 2006.
Khaki web belt for the straps, liner is an old pair of cargo parachute pants, toggles included.
Oui je parle Francais! book bag, 2006
Cotton linen dress for liner, ribbon and button closure, cotton belt for handles.
Reader’s Digest Condensed Book purse, 2010
Sassy blue jeans liner, Dad’s casual friday belt for handles, lone star rivets.
Pie’s kitchen, Christmas 2012. Photo by Barry Long.
Top, To Kill a Mockingbird book bag with dust jacket, 2010. Belt and liner from vintage secretary’s skirt.
Adventures for Readers Book 1 bag, 2006, bottom.
Hanging out in the McIntire Book Bin, photo by John Robinson, Summer 2011, http://www.robinsonimagery.com/. Improving Your Health book bag, leather handles.
Terri and Karen, Charlottesville City Market, Summer 2007.
Green book bag with green belt handles.
terriloui 
Reblogged this on wetinkpresspublishing.
I love the book purse!!! I’m going to make one!
What a great idea for old books you don’t want any more! I hate to destroy books, but out-dated textbooks? Fair game! Bad plots? Fair game! I have a gorgeous old book that was a sample for a salesman to carry around, just part of the book, but a beautiful embossed cover. I’ve kept it for years because it’s beautiful, but I couldn’t think what to do with it short of an altered book. Bingo! What better way to announce that you love books than to carry a book bag!
Nice, good idea and seems fun to do 😀
So awesome!
These are wonderful – the only one that makes me cringe is the “to kill a mockingbird” cover with the dust jacket… Hope it was a published for school distribution and not an oldie!
Reblogged this on southern skies publishing and commented:
What a great idea for a bookbag!
What a novel idea!!! Two of my favourite things com~bind… Well done! 🙂
Reblogged this on Dreaming Books and commented:
Since I love to read, I thought it would be appropriate to add a little book-ish accessorizing! Let me tell you, when I’m a teacher, I will be sporting one of these bags! Who’s with me? Get out those old books and get to it!
Reblogged this on LibraryDenizens and commented:
Repurposed book art. Sometimes a book’s innards elapse in relevance while the boards remain strong and informative–bookbags made of books!
Such a great project! I love the idea of giving the books new purpose. Would be a great rainy day craft.
so cool!!!! could be the next fashion trend!!!
I am so annoyed that I don’t have one of these!!