Cool bookends – By putting your creative mind to use, you will never buy again bookends. There are many things you can use to make bookends. Think of items with enough weight to support their books or something that can be bent so that part of it is below a couple of books to create the necessary weight.Make Bookends Vintage Plate. Get some old license plates. You can find these in your garage, the garage of his grandmother or a thrift store. Clean the plates with mild soap and a nonabrasive cloth. Measure 4 inches from one end of your license plate and mark with a pencil.