Happy November Friends! Can you believe it’s only 3 more weeks until Thanksgiving?! This is a really special time of the year, perfect for reflecting on God’s many blessings in our lives, no matter how small or insignificant they may seem, there is always something to be thankful for.
Since I promised you last week that I would be debuting NEW SHOP ITEMS every week this month, I am sharing with you all today, these really adorable upcycled Little Golden Book journals that I have been busy creating.
Do you have a favorite book from your childhood that you distinctly remember sitting down and reading over and over and over again? I know I have many books that would fit this description. In fact, my mom passed down some of them to me once my children were born, so they too could enjoy those timeless tales.
Little Golden Books definitely fall into a nostalgic category for many people. These inexpensive and well illustrated books were the brainchild of Georges Duplaix, who in 1940 was head of Artists and Writers Guild Inc., a division of Western Publishing tasked with developing new children’s books. In 1938, the first joint effort between Western and Simon & Schuster, A Children’s History, was published.
The series originated with Simon & Schuster; and Western Printing and Lithographing Company – located right here in Racine, Wisconsin – was Simon & Schuster’s partner in the Little Golden Books venture, with Western handling the actual printing. Ownership and control of the series has changed several times since and Little Golden Books are currently published by Penguin Random House.
Many of the Little Golden Books have become bestsellers, including The Poky Little Puppy, Tootle, Scuffy the Tugboat, and The Little Red Hen. Several of the illustrators for the Little Golden Books later became staples within the picture book industry, including Corinne Malvern, Tibor Gergely, Gustaf Tenggren, Feodor Rojankovsky, Richard Scarry, Eloise Wilkin, and Garth Williams.
Many books in the Little Golden Books series deal with nature and science, Bible stories, nursery rhymes, fairy tales. and Christmastime.
I still have several of my own Little Golden Books from my childhood that have now made their way onto my own children’s bookshelves. My favorite book was called Baby Dear, by Esther and Eloise Wilkin. It is very well-loved, and instantly brings me back to my childhood days of playing house with dolls and tea parties.
But what about those favorite books that you may have once had, but didn’t make it past your own childhood? Whether it be because they were lost in a move, sold at a rummage sale, or worse, scribbled on to the point of no return?! I am guilty of this myself!! I used to love drawing long eyelashes on all the children in the books illustrated by Eloise Wilkin…it must have really bothered me back then that they didn’t have any!
Anyway, these Little Golden Book journals I’ve created are a perfect way to bring back that nostalgia that you may still fondly remember as a child, but don’t still have the book to remind you of it. Each journal still has the original hardcover front & back, along with the complete story inside, mixed in between 40 sheets of plain white drawing paper.
I thought it would be nice to bind these using loose leaf ring clips, that way if the drawing pages get filled up, all you need to do is cut more paper, hole punch it and add it back into the journal for more enjoyment.
Each book is unique in its own way, and has so much sentimental value to it. I will be giving each of my own kids one of these for Christmas this year, along with some colored pens or crayons, so they can enjoy the story and have their own space to doodle or write notes alongside the pages.
What about you? What’s your favorite Little Golden Book from your childhood? So far there are about 10 books up on my Shop’s page to choose from, but I have lots more that I am in the process of creating and they will be added soon. Be sure to check it out and see if you can find your favorite!
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