DIY DECOR: Faux Bronze Hand Bookends

I love all things books.  Check that.  I love all things real books - not those fake e-books.  I love the look, smell, feel and our house is overflowing with them.  I've been on the hunt for some quirky bookends to organize and display some of our favorites and just haven't found anything that had the golden combo of being budget friendly and our style.  Then, while cruising the local craft store I stumbled upon a selection of paper mache craft hands and that crafty little lightbulb of mine went off quicker than you can say The End!

I've been on a roll with the simple DIY projects lately like my ottoman redo and my pillow covers and this one is no exception.  The supply list was short:

• (2) Paper mache craft hands
• (2) Scrap 2x4 blocks
• E-6000 Industrial strength adhesive
• Paint

As were the steps to complete it:

Apply glue to the bottom of the paper-mache hand.  (I chose not to sand the sides of my block beforehand but feel free to be less lazy than myself and break out the sandpaper to give it a nice rounded edge and a smooth side.  Or you could trim off the rounded ends so that all sides have the same blunt end.)

Glue it down to the wood block - using a book to find the right positioning so that the side of the hand stands flat against a book (or plumb, if you're technical.)

Use books to support the hands while they dry, both on the side and on the back.

Once the glue has dried, paint the bookends.  I chose to paint them a bronze color which I created using three different shades of MYColor  Inspired by Pantone craft paint (metallic ochre, metallic bronze, flat phantom.)

Let the paint dry and that's it.

Not too shabby and while they're not these - for $3 a pop I'm okay with that.

These simple bronze hand bookends are just the right of quirk to add to our eclectic decor.  For those that aren't really into the metallic look these would look pretty rad painted a bright pop of color instead. 

So what about you guys?  Are you on the e-book bandwagon or are you a traditionalist at heart and prefer the real deal?