Back-to-school hack: Cereal book covers
A creative TikTok user shared his genius back-to-school hack for covering your books on a budget.
The start of the school year is always a time of mixed emotions. The kids are excited to see their friends again, while parents are stressed out of their minds.
Between uniforms, stationery, and school books, January’s financial pinch feels extra tight. Yet, one TikTok user lightened the mood with a hilariously creative solution to one common back-to-school woe: book covers.
Instead of spending money on traditional covers, @lustrylove repurposed a few household items to wrap his school books. The results are nothing short of iconic!
The viral video has racked up over 800,000 views and shows three school books wrapped in packaging from cereal boxes, namely Kellogg’s Cornflakes and Weetbix. He also used a milk box.
As the camera pans over the makeshift covers, it’s almost hard to tell whether these are school books or breakfast cereal ads!
Check out the ingenious hack below:
@lustrylove Haibo no money left this time of year iqiniso 🤣🤣🤣 #SAMA28 #southafrica #school #15thofjanuary2023 #fyp #foryou #books #viralvideos ♬ Mnike (Radio Edit) (feat. DJ Maphorisa, Nandipha808, Ceeka RSA & Tyron Dee) (Official Audio) - Tyler ICU & Tumelo.za
TikTok users praised the ingenious hack. The video sparked both laughter and inspiration across the platform, reaching more than 100,000 likes and 1,900 comments.
Some viewers applauded the creativity, with one user commenting, “Genius! Imagine getting hungry in class and pulling out a Cornflakes book!”
Another wrote, “This is the real definition of thinking outside the (cereal) box!”
Others were quick to admit they’d try the hack themselves. “School supplies are expensive, this is my new aesthetic for 2025!” one parent joked.
Januworry is notoriously tough on wallets, especially after the festive season splurge, which leaves families searching for budget-friendly hacks to make ends meet.
Just like the guy who used KFC packaging to wrap his books, @lustrylove’s book-covering idea is a reminder that a little creativity can go a long way.
While it’s a fun, humorous solution, it also highlights the resourcefulness so many South Africans tap into during challenging times.
So, the next time you pour yourself a bowl of Cornflakes, don’t be so quick to throw that box away. It might just be your next book cover masterpiece.
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