Crafted Book Vase

This week, I am going to show you how to fashion a vase – not from clay, but from a book!  A bibliographic vessel!
It’s a fairly quick to make, and quite attractive.  Good for storing water-less flora like dried grasses and flowers.   These autumn twigs work rather well too.

This is how it is done:
You will need:
An old book of about 75- 100 physical pages (150-200 numbered pages – as book pages are numbered on both sides)
If the book has too many pages, you can use a sharp craft knife and slice the spine down the back to get the right number.

1. Remove the cover from the book.  Lay it down on the table, and fold the top right hand corner of the first page down toward the centre of the book.  (Like a giant dog-ear).  Fold the second page of the book in half lengthwise towards the centre of the book. Make sure that the folds are firm and sharp.
2. Keep on folding like this through the whole book, alternating these 2 folds.  Eventually the book will look something like this from the side … and  … the top.
3. Turn the book, so that the narrow part is close to you, and begin re-folding the pages.  The vertically folded page will be folded in the same direction again.  The previously folded edge will be folded into the centre.  These folds should not be crisp like the previous ones, but more rounded. 
4. Roll-fold the edge of the obliquely folded page in the same direction towards the centre again.  Work your way through the book, alternating the folds as before.
5. Eventually you will work your way round, and you will see the vase shape appearing as you work.  Once you are finished you will see all the gaps from the top, where you can place stems of flowers. 
6. The finished product – a stable and versatile vase.  Use fewer pages if you have thicker stems or thick book pages.

   Do you remember this rose display from a while ago?