Secret Book Safe (Another Pinterest Project)

For Christmas this year I really wanted to give some gifts that would mean something to those I gave it to and that would be on the low end of the cost scale. I went to Pinterest to find some ideas. It didn't take long to find some great ideas. I found a site that had 25 great ideas for DIY gifts. My 2 favorites were the secret book safe and the miniature Polaroid magnets I posted yesterday.

Now to the secret book safe. I hopped over to the dollar store and grabbed the biggest/thickest books I could find. I was going to get books that had some meaning for each person, but the dollar store is pretty limited in their book selection. To the shop I went.

I chose a page I wanted to have as the last page before the "safe" and added one more page. I propped the book open and made a mix of glue and water (roughly 70% glue/30% water). I used a small paint brush and brushed the glue mix along the outside of the pages until it was completely covered and not dripping.
Then I used a metal ruler to measure 1/2 inch margins all the way around.

Then I used a box cutter to start slicing the pages.

I made it through 1 1/2 books using this boxcutter. My fingers were killing me! It was not the best box cutter anyhow. I had to cut slices through the middle of the pages and try to get as much out as possible. The corners were probably the hardest part.

 I read you could use a dremel and my father-in-law had the right part, but his dremel was at work. Then my father-in-law gave me a game changer. He had a oscillating multi-tool! It has a few attachments for it, but the one I needed looked like a scraper with grooves. Basically it moves back and forth at a rapid rate and I would cut into the book a bit at a time. Soooooo much better. The sides looked much nicer and it went way faster. Oh, and it didn't hurt.

I did use scissors to even a few spots out. You need to be careful you don't cut yourself with any of these tools. The scissor was the most dangerous for me. See?

After you are finished cutting out the center you need to apply your glue mix to the inside and another coat on the outside is recommended. You also want to glue the top of the rim of the pages and glue down the last page you did not cut. I used paint cans to put on top of them while they dried. I let them dry overnight but I think you can get it in 30 minutes or so. Then you open the book carefully and cut the top page you glued down.

When you are done you can store your tools in there or other valuables. I recommend you put it on a book shelf with other books. :)