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  • Activities and Competitions

    Organizing activities and competitions can be fun but there are times you need some fresh input. In the activity drop-down menu below, you can find heaps of ideas. What about a Photo Shoot Competition of You and Your Favorite Book? Or You and Your Poem?

  • Activities

  • TIP: Don’t overdue it!

    Too much text, images or books on display too close together will distract the eye. It all becomes a blur. Each object needs its own space. Think of a shop window that is more than full with appliances, you can’t distinguish one object from the other, while carefully placed objects will grab your attention.

  • TIP: Think inside the hat!

    Party hats, store-bought or made from pages of an old book or scrap paper are very useful for a display. You can staple the hat to the board as a container for whatever you want to showcase. Or hang them in front of the board filled with little notes, poems, toy animals or whatever takes your fancy

  • TIP: Create a 3D effect!

    Create a 3D effect by hanging objects in front of the display board, like fish in a Sea Life display or lanterns in a Spring Display. A bare branch with some faux flowers works a treat.

  • TIP: Staple at an angle

    Removing old display items will be much easier when you hold the stapler at an angle when you tack items to the board. The staples will stick out at one side - perfect to get hold of and pull them out when you change displays.

  • TIP: Use a glue gun

    Glue guns are fantastic tools for creating displays. You can attach all sorts of materials like hard plastic, metal, fabric and everything else you can think off. Be careful with your fingers (blow - blow) the glue is very hot and you easily get blisters.

About

We live in a visual world and what is a greater joy than being welcomed in a vibrant space where the mind is challenged and the eye is invited to explore?

The philosophy of a good display:

Displays are like advertisements; they attract attention, and once a customer walks over for a look, they take notice of the product you want to sell. That might be a specific book collection or a promotion for a book talk or MakerSpace area. Whether you want to draw attention to a community project or a global topic, you want it to be noticed.

Whatever it is, a display that stands out is likely to get the message across. That’s why buses have striking advertisements on the back. And even if you are not interested in the latest brand of ice cream, you absorb that information when you drive past or – in a cloud of smoke – wait for the traffic light to turn green. Subconsciously you have processed the information and stored it away. 

A good display tells a story. It connects your product and your visitors on several levels. It shows that you care for your environment, that you connect with the community and it shows that you value your customer’s opinion. Through making a display – one that makes your customer smile or contemplate – you connect with a future musician, mum, plumber or scientist. 

In The Netherlands, I was part of a Library Team that organized activities involving art, culture and education and I learned using a jigsaw or glue gun as easily as a staple gun. I love upcycling and using materials that are for grabs like old umbrellas, garden tools, branches from a cut-down tree or withdrawn pages of books. Basically, I love inventing and creating stuff.

I like sharing my ideas and I enjoy seeing my work being copied because to me that’s the biggest compliment one can get. Copyright is a very modern invention, Leonardo da Vinci had no idea it existed nor had Socrates. All photos and descriptions are Creative Commons and therefore free to use.

I hope that my displays, tips and tricks will help you to make your own eye-catching displays. You can copy and use whatever you like it’s all in the public area. If you make a display with the help of this website, please let me know. It’s great to get positive feedback. 

You can email me: admin@creativelibrarydisplays.com. I love to hear from you

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  • TIP: Use old umbrellas as a display unit!

    Old umbrellas without the fabric but with a good frame are fantastic as a display unit. You can hang whatever you want from it, fold fabric over it and let it rotate or stay static. Why not hang origami birds from it, or butterflies. (Check out our Butterfly display) Shiny fabric draped over the frame will give it extra cachet.... let your imagination run free and experiment! Three on a row or in a group are even better. Now you just need to get some old brollies and there you go.

  • TIP: Keep an action list

    I am not particularly good at it myself - I'm an ad hoc person - but it is one of my recommendations when I give display workshops. It helps you keeping track of what you're going to do. Make a rough sketch of how the display will look like and write down what materials and tools you're going to need Create a time-line / checklist: This week copying and laminating - Next week: buy or beg materials - Two weeks: covering display boxes with matching paper - Three weeks: collect books matching the display etc. till you reach D-day and start getting nervous....

  • An idea for your next display? WHAT BUGS YOU?

    Keep on the lookout for unusual, funny or cartoon-like images in magazines, on internet or in the daily paper like the image above. Cut or copy them and store them for when you need inspiration.
    One of those unusual images can be the basis for a great display. You don't need to do the whole design yourself.

  • Or what about this one? PORTABLE TRAVELLING…

    Don't forget to check out our page on Travel The World From Your Lazy Chair. Or maybe the New Zealand History one. With the borders are closed, you can easily adjust it to Travelling in NZ, Art & Culture in NZ or Where to go in NZ.

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