I was recently given a 2nd Generation Kindle but miss the book feel. So naturally, I bought a decorative hardcover book and gutted it, replacing a single story with many.

This guide is different from all the other guides I found primarily because I use only two elastic straps and have a latch.

Here's the materials list (in addition to the book and Kindle):

*Ribbon (I used the bookmark included in the hacked up book)
*Scotch tape
*Glue (Tacky Glue & hot glue)
*Thin craft foam pads
*Black acrylic paint
*Cool looking button with at least 2 holes (I used a four-hole button)
*Thin elastic straps
*Thin cardboard
*Thread

Tools:

*Scissors
*Leatherworking needle (or other thicker than normal needle that can go through cardboard without breaking but still fit through button holes)
*Metal thimble (to push the needle through the book)
*Thin paintbrush

Here's two pics of the final product below. Now let's get started!

Step 1: Steps 1-3: Selection, Gut, & Sew

Step 1: Find a book that is the right size for your kindle, choose a matching button, and a matching ribbon. Make sure the button is not completely flat on the bottom as you will need it to be slightly rounded in order to tie the ribbon around it when latching the cover later.

Step 2: Gut the book by cutting the pages out from the inside near the spine. Be careful not to accidentally cut through the cover while doing this like I did. Luckily for me, the cut was small and just added character to the cover. You may not be so lucky.

Step 3: Select a spot of the cover where you may sew a button which will be used as a latch the close the cover. Once the spot is selected, make sure when the cover closes the button will not be directly over the screen. The reason for this is there will be a slight bump on the inside of the cover where the button is sewn on which could cause pressure on the screen over time.
The cover will only be hard to go through with a needle on the first punctures. Therefore, puncture the holes to align with the button first without thread. Afterwards, double or triple knot the thread and sew the button on firmly.

The images are of my gutted book with the button sewn on.

Step 2: Steps 4-7: Glue, Cut, & Glue

Step 4: Take the piece of ribbon and glue it to the inside of the back cover. I taped it first with Scotch tape and left a lot of slack because I was unsure exactly how I was going to use the ribbon. Later on, I decided simply wrapping the ribbon around the button twice to close the cover was the best way to tie the book and I cut off the extra slack.

Step 5: Cut the foam to the size of the inside of the book. The photo below shows only half of the foam (it is folded). Next, get a piece of sturdy but thin cardboard. I used an old photo mailer. Cut the cardboard to the size of the Kindle. Mine is a little too small but I made it work anyways. Use the tacky glue to attach the cardboard to the foam. I used a heavy duty spray glue left over from another project but it was a big, sticky mess. The tacky glue should be sufficient.

Step 6: Cut the elastic so that it can wrap around the foam vertically and have at least one inch extra on the back of the foam both on top and on bottom. You will need two straps.

Step 7: Take the foam, line it up and make sure you know how both the foam and the Kindle will fit inside the cover. You may want to use the scotch tape to ensure your elastic stays in place. Next, align the elastic straps so that they fit in between the screen and the buttons. Glue the elastic on the back of the foam using a hot glue gun. The elastic should not be stretched at this point but it should not be loose. Just make it taut. Once the glue is dry, double check that the elastic is in the right position and the right tightness.

The images show the black foam pad folded in half with the white cardboard glued to it, the ribbon taped and glued to the back cover, the elastic hot-glued to the back of the cardboard, and the elastic straps vertically aligned on the foam.

Step 3: Steps 8-10: Cut, Glue, & Paint

Step 8: Cut another piece of foam to the size of the cardboard, making holes for the elastic glued to it. I used a green foam pad for this step. The reason for this step is to make the back of the foam flat for when it is glued to the cover. I also added some more hot glue onto the elastic filling in the holes. Just be careful not to use so much hot glue as to make it rise above the foam pad.

Step 9: Use the tacky glue to attach the foam to the inside of the cover. I glued the back cover first then the front cover. Two of the pictures show each cover held down by a book and gallon of water as the glue dries, with a tall, flat object holding the other over. Do not glue the foam to the spine. The original book was not glued to the spine, so neither should our foam modification.

Step 10: After the glue has dried, use the thin paintbrush and the black acrylic paint to paint any unwanted color showing around the edges on the inside of the book. I also used the paint to conceal the layers of foam and cardboard.

Once everything dries, read and enjoy!