The center has a tree stand with a dowel fastened in it. A trouble light (make sure it is turned on, the tree will be turned on by plugging it in) is taped to the bottom and an extension cord is taped to the dowel for the lamp at the top.
The first 3 layers are a circle, each layer stepped in slightly.
first layer: 8 stacks of encyclopedias (red, green and blue), each of the stacks separated
by an upright red encyclopedia.
second layer: 8 stacks of red books, stacks separated by alternating green and red
upright encyclopedias.
third layer: 8 stacks of Readers Digest Condensed Books (RDCB), 5 in each stack,
separated by upright red RDCB.
The top three layers each have a cardboard circle supporting them, with a hole in the center for the dowel. The cardboard circles are cut from large boxes, 2 layers taped together and covered with gold paper. The size is determined by the diameter of your tree at each layer.
Place a cardboard circle on top of the 3 bottom layers, make sure your extension
cord is threaded up through the hole.
fourth layer: 8 RDCB fanned open by opening the book all the way and taping the covers
together, separate these with 2 upright closed RDCB. Arrange in the circle evenly.
Another cardboard circle, thread extension cord through.
fifth layer: tape 2 fanned open RDCB together. Arrange a circle of these pairs and
separate them by an upright RDCB flanked on either side with red paperbacks.
Another cardboard circle, thread extension cord through.
sixth layer: make a complete circle of fanned open RDCB. I stabilized this layer by taping
the book covers together. The center will look like a wagon wheel. Leave a small center
opening for the dowel and cord. Place a red paperback between every two RDCB.
The very top: Stack 6 RDCB on top in stacks of 2, place another one in the middle and top with a reading lamp. Add a coffee mug and reading glasses.
3 bows made from ribbon with books on it were placed around the top and 8 bows were placed between the 3rd and 4th layers. We tucked irredescent celophane in the spaces between the books on the bottom three layers to diffuse the light and to obscure the insides.
I gathered the books from our book sale room and looked for sets that were uniform in size and a good color. We moved the books on book carts, stacked in the way we would use them and a layer on one side of the cart labeled. Doing this rather than boxing them up and moving them saved a lot of time. It took us 1 1/2 hours from start to finish. By the way, I experimented for a couple days before coming up with this pattern. I tried stacking them like bricks, tried tucking in greenery, tried mini lights and garland. The purist look of everything books seemed most effective and the stacks of books were more sound structurally. I hope that you have fun building your tree!
The Book Tree
©2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 RoseMary Honnold.