Crafting

How to make charger plates made from old book pages

Looking for a new fun way to set the table but not spend any money? Make charger plates from old book pages.

I have used old book pages to create a few crafts. A music paper Christmas tree and a wreath.

My daughter likes to use old books and fold them into unique shapes for decoration.

They are really cool looking.

You can see how we used the folded books in the centerpiece for my Thanksgiving tablescape post as well as the paper chargers.

How to make chargers from book pages

What is a charger you maybe asking? It is a decorative plate that goes under a dinner plate.

We tore pages from an old book and folded them accordion style and stapled two or three of them together to make a fan.

Then we placed the fans on top of some brown woven place mats to create a charger.

The weight of the plate keeps the fans from moving around

Here you can see the dinner plate and salad plates sitting atop of the book page fans.

Tip- If you make your accordion pleats too big the plates will rock and roll a bit.

Play around with your pleats to make sure your plates will sit down nicely on them.

Adding color and texture to place settings

I love mixing textures like old book page paper folded, brown woven place mats, white dinner plates with a tan salad plate and a cut crystal rose colored wine goblet.

Adding a really beautiful napkin that have lots of colors in the pattern really makes this fall place setting top notch.

Don’t you agree?

Browns, pinks, blues and yellow look so pretty sitting against the tan salad plate.

Other ideas for paper charger plates

You could use scrapbook paper in all the myriads of colors and patterns to change your look!

What about mod podge paper onto old chargers for a completely different look?

The Graphics Fairy has a great tutorial on creating some mod podge chargers.

More fall tablescapes

Outdoor tablescape using black eyed susans

Purple and orange pumpkin and fall leaves tablescape

Romantic outdoor dinner under a tree

Golden yellow, orange and green outdoor tablescape

Shop Fall Things

Karins Kottage

Welcome to Karins Kottage! There is always something fun going on! You would think after becoming an empty nester couple that our nest would be very quiet and empty but our Kottage nest is usually more full than what we started out with! You might find me hosting a birthday party or graduation party and a baby shower on the same weekend or a big outdoor get together with 25 of our friends and family in the backyard or maybe I might be in the kitchen trying out a new recipe for my hubby and I to grill on the BBQ for a quiet night for the two of us. I am passionate about entertaining and setting a beautiful table! I may or may not have an addiction to cloth napkins and fun salad plates oh and goblets too! I think I will always have a home decorating DIY project in the works as long as my hubby is on board with me haha. We have painted A LOT in the 6 homes we have owned in the 35 years that we have been married as well as re-done multiple pieces of furniture, added wall and ceiling treatments, replaced lights, bathroom fixtures and even tiled floors! I have sewn what seems like a million window treatments for our home as well as for family, made slipcovers, and duvets and even a formal dress or two!

View Comments

  • What a clever idea Karin --- both easy and inexpensive to create while incorporating an interesting element to a table setting! I was also thinking the paper chargers would be perfect for a Wonderland or Beatrix Potter theme table. Pinning!

  • Now that is great idea! I would never have thought of that, I am so glad you shared it. You can't beat the price either!

  • Cute idea! Something different than the usual/standard chargers for a table. I like it :)

  • I love it!!! Such a creative idea, and like you said...no cost!! Thanks so much for visiting Take Six!

  • Great idea. I've been saving all the pheasant feathers from Sweet Mister's hunting trips. At some point, I'll have enough to make pheasant feather chargers....may be a whole bunch of hunting trips involved. Thank you for sharing your design idea. Cherry Kay

  • Great idea! I once did a tablescape with a book theme, and I bought a set of large, thin books at the thrift store. I opened each one to pages with text only and used them as my chargers with the book intact. It looked great, too!

    • Connie,
      I love that idea...I will have to try that out sometime soon. Thanks for sharing your creative idea!
      Karin

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