Gift-giving is always fun, but becomes especially heartwarming when combined with handmade gifts. These DIY gifts for book lovers deliver exactly that.
Personally, handmade gifts are my favorite to give, especially to those I’m closest to. They’re just more personal and unique.
Hence why I made upwards of 50 tiny little knitted snowmen while I was pregnant with my first child to gift to my family.
I even used scrapbook paper to make custom little gift boxes for each ornament, a detail I forgot about until this very moment, but you can see the paper in the background of these photos.
Suffice to say, this was my most ambitious knitting project, I think… and though it was a success, I probably won’t ever do it again.
Still, whether you prefer to paint, sew, knit, crochet, 3-D print, cross-stitch, or whatever, in this post, you’ll find inspiration for a gift for the bookworm in your life.
DIY Gifts for Book Lovers
Note: some links below are affiliate links, meaning I make a small commission on any purchases made through them at no additional cost to you.
Bookmarks
The most obvious, and perhaps the easiest, idea on this list is a bookmark, but this useful gift can be anything but basic.
Handmade bookmarks can be:
- Cross stitched
- Watercolor
- Painted
- Printed from an image online onto thick cardstock
- Made from clay (i.e. two trinkets with string in the middle long enough to be stranded between pages)
- Beads (same as above!)
The possibilities are limited only by your imagination.
Easy DIY Bookmark Tutorials
- DIY Two-Tone Leather Bookmark
- 5 Minute Flower Bookmarks
- Retro-Style Library Card Bookmarks
- Fabric Bookmarks (with any fabric you like!)
- Simple Painted Winter Scene Bookmark
- Easy DIY Cross Stitch Bookmark Instructions
Bags
What lover of books doesn’t need a cute tote bag to lug their haul from the library? Bags are one of the easiest things to make, but super useful… and it’s hard to have too many, so there’s little chance it’ll end up donated or worse, collecting dust in a closet somewhere.
Easy DIY Bags Tutorial
- 1-Hour Library Tote – a free and easy sewing tutorial
- Pocket Tote Library Bag Pattern
- Book Bags with Waterproof Lining Instructions
- Upcycled Tea Towel Tote Bags
- 27+ Free Knitted Bag Patterns (for all skill levels!)
- Recycled Denim Tote Bags (great for worn-out jeans!)
Blankets
Every reader needs a comfy blanket to cozy up and read with.
There are lots of sweet quilt patterns to choose from if you want something high-effort, but you can also do something like a simple tie blanket in colors or characters they like, if you’re lucky enough to find them.
Easy DIY Blankets for Book Lovers
- How To Make A Fleece Tie Blanket
- No-Sew Fleece Blanket Without Knots
- How To Make A Minky Blanket
- Crochet Square Blanket Instructions (note: this style of construction can be used in combination with a pixel pattern to make really eye-catching designs, like eight-bit Mario blankets and such!)
- Easy Chunky Arm-Knit Blanket (so luxuriously chunky, but maybe not the best with cats – but I’m not sure!)
- Upcycled Denim Quilt (this makes a really heavy fabric, which reminds me a bit of a weighted blanket.)
- DIY Rag Quilt (another great use for upcycled denim!)
- Legendary by Elizabeth Hartman pattern (okay this one’s not free and a bit ambitious, but I made it recently and absolutely adore how it turned out. Lots of pieces for a newbie quilter, but simple enough if you take it slow. Cute enough to include!)
Side note: Spoonflower can be a great resource for hard-to-find patterns – like this gorgeous hand-drawn crow fabric I absolutely swoon over:
Upcycled Coffee Mugs
Coffee and books go together like peanut butter and jelly, wine and chocolate, and Katniss and Peeta (fight me.) What’s better than a personalized mug to drink from while you read?
Or a wine glass, depending on the audience.
Either way, this is a great idea for a DIY gift for the book lover in your life, especially if you want to have your children involved in the creation since it’s so versatile and difficult to screw up (function-wise, anyway.)
DIY Coffee Mugs/Wine Glasses
- DIY Sharpie Mugs for Easy Personalized Gifts
- DIY 5 Minute Decal Transfer for Coffee Mugs
- 8 Ways To Decorate Coffee Mugs (I kind of love this idea for a book club activity!)
Want the customization of DIY with a little less hands-on skill? You can always make a photo mug using Shutterfly for the warm fuzzies without the (potential) aggravation.
RE-BOund or Sprayed-Edge Books
Does the bookworm in your life love a particular book or series?
Imagine this: you find a copy that’s a little imperfect and in need of love, whether at your local thrift store or perhaps from Book Outlet.
You could do all kinds of things, like rebinding it if you’re feeling particularly ambitious. But a safer, easier option with good potential payoff is simply spraying the edges.
Sprayed edges are all the rage, and they’re relatively simple to do with stunning results, like this well-known example, Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros.
You can learn to do the basics with this DIY Sprayed Edges Tutorial, but can also do fancy stuff like stenciled edges (and look, here’s a kit to learn how to do it!)
3-D Printed Bookshelf Trinkets
No, you don’t have to be an engineer for this DIY gift, Instead, you can find lots of files online and take advantage of the resources at your local library to produce a unique 3-D printed object to adorn the bookshelf of your favorite book lover.
Some ideas for 3-D Printed DIY Gifts for Book Lovers:
- Skeleton dragon 3-D Print files
- Fairy skeleton (could be ideal for dark fantasy lovers, and easily customized with different wings!)
- To Be Read bookends (fun way to organize the physical TBR list!)
- Geometric raven
- Planter that looks like a stack of books
Christmas Ornaments
Are you searching for Christmas-related DIY gifts for book lovers? Ornaments are the perfect blend of usable and unfussy for even the most inexperienced of crafters.
DIY Ornaments for Book Lovers
- Confetti-style book cover ornament instructions
- Easy DIY Book Page Ornaments (ideal for books far past their prime, whether water-damaged or etc.)
- DIY Mini Pamphlet Book Ornaments
I’m sure this idea could be combined with the last, as well – plenty of 3-D print objects can be turned into ornaments pretty easily!
Alternatives to DIY Gifts For Book Lovers That Still Bring The Warm Fuzzies
Another option is to outsource the handmade-ness of your bookish gift. I fully realize that’s like getting homemade spaghetti sauce from Olive Garden, but hear me out: there’s an indie bookstore that can fulful this need.
It’s called The Crafty Bookstore, and very much lives up to its name, supplying handcrafted bookish accessories alongside their books – many of which are independently published.
Like look at these custom-made book valets, described as such:
The perfect solution to organizing your reading space has come to The Crafty Bookstore. Keep losing the place in your book? Worried about spilling a drink on your tablet or ereader? Misplacing your glasses or annotating supplies? Not anymore, with our custom made Book Valets! Each Book Valet is made with solid, real wood, cut and crafted to give you a lasting piece of furniture that is not only beautiful but functional. It easily fits on a night stand with room to spare, has rubber feet on the bottom to prevent sliding or knocking over. Plus grooves on each size to hold a phone, tablet, or your book, and a triangular cubby to store bookmarks, annotating supplies, glasses, or anything else you want! Available in 3 different colors we give you a range from dark, medium, to light so you can coordinate with any space!
These (and other accessories) are available here: The Crafty Bookstore’s Crafts and Accessories.
They also happen to stock my book, The Violin, but no pressure to gift that particular book. Honestly! All the books they stock are worth reading (or, well, likely. I haven’t read them all. But I feel pretty confident about that statement regardless ;))
Do you have any pictures of DIY gifts for book lovers you’ve made recently? Feel free to show them off in the comments!
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