Vintage Book Table Numbers
If you’ve been following along for a while, you know that I have a major love for reading. On top of that, I love the way vintage books look when incorporated into decor, giving it that artfully mismatched “found” objects look. For the tablescapes at our wedding, I drew inspiration from Anthropologie displays and worked with my florist to curate votives, bud vases and fresh fruit to mix in with the flower arrangements.
Photo Credit: Martha Stewart Magazine
But the table numbers kind of stumped me.
Until, that is, I stumbled upon this image on Pinterest.
It. Was. Perfect. And it would tie in with the Flower Cones with Dried Flower Petals I was already in the process of making for the ceremony.
Additionally, I knew it would be a fairly easy DIY project that I could do on my own (rather than finding somewhere to purchase these online).
My first stop to acquire all the books I’d need was The Last Bookstore in Downtown LA. If you haven’t been, I highly recommend checking it out. I was able to purchase each book I needed for about $3 each.
Other materials needed for this project:
Exacto knife + cutting mat
Hot glue
Black sharpie
I went with Roztha One for the font - I wanted a thicker number so the words on the book pages would be visible. Plus, it was giving me those vintage vibes I was aiming for.
Side note: there are SO many fonts out there… save your brain from decision fatigue and once you find the right one, just go for it.
Let’s do this:
Tear out a page from the book. The devil is in the details, so make sure your page has nice words on it to be displayed.
Trace the number using your Exacto knife. I tried two techniques: one, trace around the cut out number, or two, use the cut-out outline and trace inside. I found the outline technique to be faster and easier. Be sure to cut out two numbers per book - one for the front and one for the back.
Attach the numbers using hot glue. I’m a big fan of Gorilla Glue. Scrape any excess off with your Exacto knife.
Once the glue has cooled, outline the shape of the numbers with your black sharpie. It doesn’t have to be perfect; in fact, I prefer the slightly imperfect look.
Repeat until you have enough table numbers.
I can’t wait to get the photos back from our wedding photographer but in person, the tables looked divine. I went with colorful books that tied in with all our wedding colors, and I love how it all turned out. There were a few extra books leftover that were incorporated into the rest of the wedding decor - I can’t wait to share more!
