How to Decorate a Cookbook With Utensils as a Bow

A family cookbook is a thoughtful gift to hand down from generation to generation.

Give your friend a cookbook to celebrate his love of cooking. Whether it’s a talent he’s possessed for years or he is only beginning to add new types of food to his repertoire, your friend is sure to appreciate your thoughtfulness. Make this cookbook unique and let your friend know that you put extra time and effort into his gift by decorating it with a bow that creatively utilizes kitchen utensils. You can create a utensil bow from items that are already in your home.

Things You'll Need

• 1 yard of ribbon
• Sewing needle
• Thread
• Craft glue
• Plastic fork and spoon

Instructions

1. Wrap the ribbon around the middle of the cookbook. Snip off loose ends and tie the ribbon in a snug double knot.

2. Tie a large bow using the rest of the ribbon. The bow’s size will vary depending on the size of the cookbook, but make sure the bow is about 1/3 of the book’s height so it will not look disproportionate when you add the utensils.

3. Sew one or two stitches in the center of the bow to prevent it from coming untied. Glue the bow to the double knot in the middle of the ribbon and allow the glue to dry.

4. Spread a line of glue along the entire length of each of the bow’s loose ends. Press a plastic spoon onto the first length and a plastic fork onto the second and allow the glue to dry. The resulting ribbon bow that appears to be made from utensils will enhance the food theme of your gift.

Tips & Warnings

• Choose a ribbon and untensils in colors that complement shades in the cookbook cover, although for the untensils white also works well.

• Use craft glue that sticks to both porous and nonporous objects. This allows for bonding with both the ribbon fabric and the plastic silverware. Ensure that the glue is water-soluble so if you accidentally get a drop on the cover of the cookbook, you can wash it away without damaging the cover.

References

• Tutorials: Learn 2 Make Decorative Book Covers
• Cookbook Publishers: Designing Your Own Cookbook
• Homemade Gift Guru: Homemade Journal

Resources

• “Bookcraft: Techniques for Binding, Folding, and Decorating to Create Books and More”; Heather Weston; 2008