Organize Your Books with a DIY Book Crate

by Allison McDonald I have been on a spring cleaning kick and when I was given the opportunity to make something for a sponsored campaign with  Mod Podge Washout and Apple Barrel Paints I knew just what I wanted to make. While cleaning I found myself shocked by how many books we have. There are stacks everywhere and out shelves are full too. I know some of you have the same problem trying to organize your books.

I wanted to make something useful that could help me teach my daughter to care for her books and that could make spring cleaning more fun. Now when my kids see the crate they are much more apt to put books back in it then back on the pile on the carpet. Having my daughter help me make this was really an important part of her taking ownership of keeping her books in good condition and so far it’s been working great. Here is how we made ours. I hope this helps you to organize your books.

Build a Crate to Organize Your Books.

1.  Gather your materials. You will need a wooden crate, Apple Barrel paint, some foam brushes, drop cloth, Mod Podge Washout, some scissors, a dish for paint, and an old book you don’t mind cutting up.
2. Start by choosing which color to paint with.
3. Paint your crate. One thing I love about acrylic paint is how fast it dries. I am so used to kid paint which takes forever. If you have an older child while they paint you can cut out the letters. But if your child is going through the “Let ME decorate the house aka draw and paint on things” stage wait until they are done. I had to put the camera down too because she got too much paint on her brush and it splattered on me narrowly missing the camera. It washed off me no problem!
4. I doubled up the pages and drew the letters in pencil. Cut and use the bottom letter so there are no pencil marks.
5. When the crate is dry it’s time for Mod Podge! The great thing about this Mod Podge Wash Out is that even if it’s dry it will come out in the wash. I have ruined plenty of clothes while crafting so it’s exciting to find a product that my kids can use and I don’t have to be right behind them wiping things up and off them.
6. Start with a thin layer on the section where you are going to add the letters. Add a letter and go over with more Mod Podge. Repeat for each letter.  As my daughter was doing this she was very angry that her initials were not being used. At 2 she can not read and while she recognized the letters she didn’t know why I’d chosen those. I felt terrible. In all my prep I didn’t explain to her what the letters said. So we took some time talking about it.
7. After the letters are on add a layer or two of Mod Podge all over the crate. This gives the crate a finishing touch and helps smooth out any rough parts.  Let dry completely ( overnight is always a good bet) and add some books!
8. Since we made this our book crate has not budged from the hearth. But, it would look great wherever you choose to organize your books. She picks out books to look at alone, ones for me to read and my favorite ones for her brother to read to her after dinner.

We hope we inspired you to organize your books! Need books to put in your book crate? Check out our long list of book reviews .

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This post was written as part of a campaign with The Blueprint Social. All opinions are my own.