How to Make a Fabric Bookmark

So - several of you mentioned that the designs for the skinny pendants/ornaments would also make great bookmarks. You're right, of course. You always are! :-)

There are a lot of tutorials out there for fabric bookmarks, but I'm very. . . picky. . . about my bookmarks. I'm a book collector, you see. My husband is a writer. We met when we worked together at an independent bookstore. I spent twenty years selling children's books. Almost all of the art in our house is by children's book illustrators. We are book people.

I like a bookmark that's not so tall that it hangs way out of the top of a standard paperback. And I definitely want a bookmark to be THIN. Nothing that will damage the spine please! So here's a quick and easy tutorial showing you how to make my kind of bookmark.

You'll need two pieces of fabric - one for the front and one for the back of your bookmark. I, of course, am partial to a bit of embroidery on the front, but you could just use any amazing fabric that you love. I stitched one of the ladies from this pattern.

Grab a bookmark you like the dimension of (this one is 1 5/8 x 7) and some super-strong, paper-backed fusible adhesive. I use Heat and Bond Ultra Hold. Do NOT try to sew through that stuff! It will gum up your needle like crazy. I keep mine separate from all my other fusibles - just in case. Anyway - cut out a piece of adhesive about 1/2 inch bigger than your bookmark all the way around. It doesn't have to be neat.

Lay it adhesive-side down over the back of your embroidered piece. (Never iron the front of your embroidery!) Follow the manufacturer's instructions to fuse it in place.

Let it cool. Peel off the paper and lay your bookmark backing right side up over it. Fuse in place. Now the bookmark front and back will be glued together.

Flip it over so you can see the front. Trim to the size you want it. This is super easy with a rotary cutter and a ruler, but you can do it with scissors too.

You're done! The adhesive will add quite a bit of stiffness to the whole thing. You could make it even stiffer by using two layers of adhesive with a sturdy interfacing between them, but I'm ok with some bend to my bookmark. And the adhesive does a really great job of keeping the edges from fraying - so you can skip the time (and bulk) of adding a hem.

I think including a handmade bookmark with a book makes it a really nice gift. And it takes no time at all! The lady took me about an hour to stitch (it would have been faster if I hadn't added all the satin stitching) and making the bookmark takes all of five minutes.

Happy stitching!

Best,
Wendi