Comic File DIY

Looook!! Individual comic book issues are ugly on a bookshelf. Gross, even! We saw a picture on MarthaStewart.com of magazine files covered with wallpaper, so that gave us this idea:

DIY after the jump.

You will need: 

a big fold-out or wrap-around comic book cover

magazine files (We used these cheap cardboard ones from Ikea.)

adhesive (We used Elmer’s spray glue for most of the project, then Xyron tape to attach the windows)

newspaper or other covering for your workspace (does this go without saying?)

cardstock

straight edge

pencil

scissors, exacto knife, or rotary cutter

self-healing mat if using exacto or rotary (pretty sure THIS goes without saying)

It’s pretty self-explanatory from the picture. 

Because comic book covers are shorter than the height of a standard magazine file, we covered the sides of the magazine files with black cardstock first. The cardstock doesn’t have to all be in one piece, as you can hide a seam behind the book cover.

Trace one magazine file onto cardstock, cut out, then use that piece of cardstock as a template to trace the other strips of cardstock and strips of comic book cover.

Be very careful to cut in straight lines when you’re cutting out the strips of the comic book cover. If you don’t, you will ruin everything, and you’ll be even lamer than a person making super-hero crafts. You’ll be the person who RUINS super-hero crafts!! Be sure to cover your surrounding area if you use spray glue. Nobody likes sticky feet.

We added a little label holder at the bottom of the files by cutting out a rectangle of cardstock to fit the space below the image at the bottom of the file. We cut a window in the square and then attached the square using a thin line of adhesive on three sides. You can leave the top of the square or one of the sides unglued. This way you can slip in a piece of paper noting what’s in the file, and you can swap it out when you change your mind.