Does anyone no how you would go about making a hollow book. Do you have to glue all the pages together seperatly or is there an easier way.

there is a project similar to this in a book i have- Retro Revamp..., by Jennifer Knapp.

What you do, is make/take a box the size of a book. (For effect, you probably want to get/make a box where its top will swing open from an edge, rather than like shirt box where there are two seperate pieces that come apart).

cover it with a novel's cover and backside (or collage, or paint it, etc.) For the sides, you can cut out text from pages in a book and glue them around the edge. Or, just draw the faux lines of the pages edge all around the sides.

If you didn't want to do this, here's my thought on using an actual book. Take varnish, or podge, or some kind of clear, brush-on adhesive. With the book closed, cover the edges in this with a brush. (If you want to be able to open the cover, obviously do not include that in the closing of the book, to avoid getting the adhesive on it.)

Once that dries, you can cut out the inside portion of the book. Proabably leave about an inch on the outer edges, I'm not sure how deep the glue will seep in. Oh, and just don't cut through to the back cover of the book.

I don't know what Drea has in mind with this hollow book, but just thinking...

This could be a cool jewelry box.

The hardest part will be hollowing out the middle, IMO. If you fold both covers back as much as possible without breaking the spine, you might be able to use a drill on a slow speed. I'd probably put a shim of wood pressed down over where you want the starter hole.

Once you have a hole big enough for a jig saw, you might be able to jig saw around. C-clamps on the papers edge with a piece of wood to keep the pages from shifting would be useful.

It might be better to make the hollow first, then glue the edges with a nice even coat of white glue. Brush strokes can be combed into the setting glue to keep the illusion of loose pages. An actual fine tooth hair comb might do it.

Maybe line the hollow with velvet or something plushy to disguise irregularities, and decorate the top. I think I would do this in gold with lame ribbon and maybe some floral picks.

Sounds like a neat project no matter what you intend to do with it.

i did this once to sneak candy to a friend at camp. i found a cheap hardbound book and glued pages together in sets of 10 to 20 and cut out my desired amount with an exacto-knife and did this with each section until i had finished, then i glued all of the sections together and left it to dry under a REALLY heavy book so that it'd dry completely flat. i also left a few pages in the front to be a little sneakier.

isnt retro revamp the coolest book?! i saw it in the city and fell in love with it!

LaURi ChiCK!

I made a hollow book today.....what I did was:

- use an exacto knife and a straight edge or cardboard template (a cardboard template you just slide against the center of the book is good, otherwise you might lose alignment) to cut the middle pieces out of a hardcover book. Keep going, takes some patience and several exacto blades. Use a large clothespin or paperclip thingy to hold finished pages out of the way. Use HEAVY cardboard or a magazine to shield the pages at the bottom that you want intact.

- even up the edges w/ the exacto.

- mix elmer's glue with a little water and brush thickly on the insides of the hollow spot, until it's fully saturated-- quicker/easier than trying to glue individual pages down.

- clamp, cover w/ heavy object, etc and let dry.

Good idea.
Barnes & Noble sells a book safe.>http://shop.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?userid=3D2TPAU069&mscssid=02LATUSEBUVB8GFKLAXA9EULHKSC8XB5&isbn=0840069154

all they did for that one was cut the pages to fit a plastic box with a lid. No glue involved. I thought it was funny that they used Martha Clark's(the prosecuter in the OJ case) book for this. She must not have sold many copies, so the publishers decided to recycle or something.

-g

Retro revamp is the craft book god of all craft books..I love the dashboard shrines..

One to my cat, and one to the rock god daniel johns..

And yeah..kill me for blasphamy, but I used a bible for a hollow book..

This is an excellent way to hide valuables. Even if the book isn't hollow, it's a good way to hide cash- if I have a lot of money in the house, for rent or whatever, i just pop it inside a book. Remember to choose a boring one with a memorable cover!

alice:

i like your idea of using the Bible for the hollow bk. maybe then mine from hs theology class would get use (if it's still here and i didn't sell it back with my textbooks....)

-S

cassandle-

My uncle phil never believed in banks and he would hide his money in books, light fixtures, everywhere! When he died they had to double check everything before giving it away or getting rid of it!

Lissa

I made a jewelry box with a hollowed out book. It's a really cool old book with a gold front and lots of colored bubbles on the inside covers.
I just took an exacto and cut through the pages and left about an 1" border. It was a little tough. I found that if the pages don't quite line up you can sandpaper them to be straight. I used regular Elmer's glue for the sides. Then I used some matte board and made some walls for the compartments inside. I like it.
Brie

Hey everyone...

Just wanted to tell you that I was so inspired after reading this thread that I decided I just had to do this myself. I went out this morning and bought a hardcover book and went at it... It turned out surprisingly well, except for one minor setback...

I thought I'd be all clever and crafty and choose an older book, since it had such a nicer, cozier look to it... I didn't stop to think about the fact that an old book has old pages which are probably not very sturdy... and I ended up with only about 2/3 of the original thickness because so much of it fell apart. So at the spine it's the thickness it should be, and on the outside it's quite a bit smaller.

Oh well, now I know for next time!

Love Rebecca

I made one myself and it TOOK FOREVER! but it was good anyways. i took an old book and made a square stencil. i traced around the stecil and cut on the lines w/ an exacto knife. I put a slip tin under 15 or so pages at a time to prevent cutting through too many pages at once. it takes forever and it turned out purdy slanted. then i teidiously "podged" the pages together, page by page UG but it's kewl! i so love it and i kept me busy for a while atleast! :)