A Book to Wear began in 2023 as a natural extension of my work as an illustrator. I had been making enamel pins of different figures like Bowie, Nina Simone, or Nick Cave, and at some point I started thinking about drawing books by authors I love.
It clicked quite quickly: it was a product I hadn’t really seen in bookstores, and once I began producing and distributing them, it felt right. It felt like readers would want to wear their favorite books and carry them with them in everyday life.
That’s how A Book to Wear started: small enamel pins inspired by literature, working as a quiet nod between readers. I saw them as a way to wear books, to keep literature present in a different, more physical way.
From the beginning, I knew the natural place for the project was bookstores. I wanted the pins to live alongside books: on display tables, near the counter, as small literary gifts that complement them. I also think of them as miniature books, objects you can collect over time.
Today, the project is present in more than 250 bookstores, and one of the things I value most is the direct relationship I have with them: booksellers and buyers who carefully select literary merchandise for their shops. Every bookstore has its own criteria and way of working, and that has helped the project evolve and grow with them.
Over time, A Book to Wear has also found its place in other spaces: design stores, concept shops, and museum bookstores. It makes sense, as the project sits somewhere between object, illustration, and book culture.
Everything is based in Barcelona, where I work and ship orders worldwide. It’s a small project in structure, but with a wide reach, and that’s very much part of its identity.
The catalog has grown gradually, with titles and authors that have been there from the beginning, like 1984, Mrs Dalloway, Mary Shelley, or John Fante, and others that have been added more recently, such as Marcel Proust, Ursula K. Le Guin, Shirley Jackson, or Georges Perec.
The idea remains the same as it was at the beginning: to create objects that connect with readers, that feel familiar, that can be collected, and ultimately, to make it possible to carry our favorite books with us every day.
If you are a bookstore interested in stocking our literary pins, you can apply for a wholesale account here