There’s no better way to enjoy the summer blooms than with fresh flowers! Sunshine & summer sound good right about now, but is your garden as ready as you are? Ditch the typical vase or flower display. Go vintage with your summer decor and try out this DIY book garden.

There isn’t much that you have to buy in order to complete this project, which is what makes it so affordable and easy! What you need: 

• book
• razor blade
• charcoal
• gravel
• soil
• ornaments or decor you would like to include into your garden
• moss

Open the book to a good place, meaning that the book is able to stay open on its own. With the ruler, mark 3 quarters of an inch on the edge of the pages and a ½ inch from the binding. It’s best to use a pencil while doing this so you can avoid ink bleeding onto the pages.

When the markings are completed, use the razor to cut the pages out. Depending on how thick the pages or book are, it’s best to do a few pages at a time. Once all the pages are removed, pull back some of the pages and line the middle (empty space) with plastic, then push it down into the reservoir.

Add charcoal, gravel, and soil to the reservoir and spread evenly. The charcoal is an important addition to this project because it will help absorb any smells and the gravel is also crucial because it provides a place for the water to go. After the soil has been added, choose the plants or flowers that you want to be in your garden and add them accordingly. Once the flowers and plants are placed, add your ornaments and/or decor to the soil.

If you’ve chosen to use moss, tuck it in around the plants. If you’d like to also use sand and rocks for your garden, place it where you think it looks best. Remember, it’s your garden so get creative and think out of the box… or a book in our case!

When your garden is settled and decorated, trim the plastic, but keep it long enough to tuck into the binding of the book. We suggest taping the plastic down but you can also keep it laying there.

Flip the pages to line back over the plastic and then your vintage book garden is complete! Watch the full tutorial below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgz4MWP_iLU