Finally, a worthwhile use for all those old National Geographics

I love National Geographic, but man, there are a lot of them out there. How many basement bookcases sag under the weight of 20 years of National Geographics? It’s one of those magazines that people tend to keep rather than recycle after reading — to its credit, no doubt, but perhaps it’s time to do something else with them. I don’t often approve of dismembering print media, but when it’s to make a bookshelf — well, then I can make an exception.

The creator of this charming little item is one Sean Miller, a Seattleite like me — and a more creative one, for that matter. He soaked the whole stack in a water/starch mixture and then put it under pressure so it’d dry solid, and then carved out the bookcase portion with a bandsaw. I’m not sure I’d trust it to hold too many books, but it sure is a beautiful and unique piece of work.

[via Inhabitat, Make, and Neatorama]