Alchemy Banner

$5 - $10 (based on 2018 prices)

Makes one banner

For the witch den, which was part of my office’s annual decorating competition, I unified the theme by incorporating alchemy symbols into many of the props. This alchemy banner was part of this endeavor. Since the prop was meant to decorate the hallways, I used two books (upwards of six-hundred pages) to craft over one-hundred feet. Your final product does not need to be this excessive. You can par it down to only a few feet. Hence, adjust the quantities in this instruction to match your desired goals.

• One or two old books
• At least four tablespoons of dark roasted coffee grounds
• One pan large enough to soak the books
• Roughly thirty yards of thick string
• One 4 oz. bottle of all-purpose tacky glue
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in cherry cobbler
  

1. Boil enough water to completely submerge the books and pour it into the pan. Add the coffee. The longer you allow the coffee to brew, the darker the stain will become. Likewise, greater amounts of coffee will produce a richer stain. Submerge the books in the coffee mixture and soak them until they reach the color you desire. I soaked mine for four days.

2. Remove the books from the water and allow them to dry. You can hang them from a clothesline and let them air dry in the sun for several days or, if time is scarce, center them on a baking sheet, place the sheet on the lowest oven rack, and bake at 200ºF for seven to ten minutes. NOTE: depending on the size of your books, you may need more or less time, so remain by the oven and constantly check the items to prevent any fires. 

3. Tear pages out of the books and use red paint to draw alchemy symbols onto them. You can add the markings randomly or put them in strategic places. While I elected to use alchemy symbols to unify the haunt’s theme, you could modify the prop by writing spells across the surfaces or using patterns of your own design.

4. Link the pages together with the string, leaving about six inches between each pendant. To attach them to the string, fold the top of the page about a quarter of an inch over the string and glue it in place. You could also punch holes in the top corners of the page and use these to connect the pendants.

5. The prop can be enhanced, if your desire, by adding clusters of feathers or small trinkets between each page to complement the theme of your haunt.