spring bookmark tutorial

I co-hosted a book-themed baby shower for our sweetest new cousin this past weekend. Everyone was asked to bring a book to help start a library for the little guy. It was such a clever theme to work with, which included darling cupcakes with children's book character toppers and the gifts were so very thoughtful and personal. Each guest gave books that had meaning to them in some way or perhaps passed along a childhood favorite of theirs. It was so neat to see what each person gave!

To go along with our theme, I made these bookmarks for the favors. They were so much fun to make, that I thought I would pass along a little tutorial as to how I made them. Here goes!

Materials:

* cardstock for bookmark
* color printer (or a black & white printer would work as well)
* scissors or paper cutter
* hole punch (I prefer the smaller hole punches)
* pinking shears (to cut the fabric for the bookmark topper, but you can also use string, yarn or ribbon)
* fabric or paper glue
* fun fabric or paper scraps

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1. print out this template

2. cut out bookmark shapes

3. cut out the 2 flower & 1 leaf shape



4. trace those shapes onto your fabric or paper and cut out

5. glue the flower & leaf into place (mixing & matching colors & patterns is the most fun part!)



6. punch a hole at the top inside the circles

7. measure how long you want the length of your bookmark topper to be and double it; use pinking shears to cut a narrow strip of fabric the doubled length (or just use string, yarn or ribbon)

8. fold the fabric in half and thread the folded part through the hole in the top of the bookmark just enough to pull the two ends through your loop



9. pull gently and voila!


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For our shower, I used the word 'grow' on all of them, and then we customized the back with a little 'welcome to the world' message to the baby. But I love the word 'grow' for so many things, and perfect for spring! The bookmarks are just happy and they are such a sweet little treat to pop in the mail to someone you love. I mean anything via snail mail is special nowadays, so why not make someone's reading pleasure even more enjoyable.

And while we're on the topic of reading, I do have to confess my addiction to the library and putting books on hold. I have rediscovered how great the library is since having children, and I think I check out more books than my kiddos do. Rarely do I actually ever finish a book before it's due (okay... maybe never), but the art of checking them out is seriously exciting for me. The crafty and cooking books top my list... and it's a fabulous way to test out a book to see if it needs to be added to your collection or it's just better to borrow it. Talk about saving a few buckaroos! Anyhow, here's to reading about what you love, visiting your local library and enjoying early spring!