This is a big post, but there are some real gems in here. It’s worth taking some time to look them over.

Please enjoy!

Bookmark Collectors Virtual Convention – Link

I’ll be updating the convention website over this next week, so be sure to stop by see the latest information about presentations and activities at the convention.

Bookmarks In the News

Articles:

A very interesting article from Laine Farley about 3 investigations she’s made into the meaning behind cryptic messages found on vintage bookmarks, at BiblioBuffet - Link

A silk bookmark from the Jantzen bathing suit manufacturer inspired this fascinating article about the history of bathing suits, from Lauren at BiblioBuffet – Link

In this post about quilting is a fabulous way one woman displayed her mother’s bookmarks, at Patchwork Sanity – Link

A nice little history of bookmarks article, at Mir Printing and Graphics Blog – Link

Val Ubell over at Collectors’ Quest had an interesting discussion with friends about what will happen to their collections when they have to give them up. Intersting food for thought – Link

Apple gave out bookmark for Halloween at their retail stores, giving rise to rumors of new products – Link

Oh my, the bookmarks with pictures of city councilors from Calderdale (England) is developing into a nice little controversy – Link

A discussion about bookmarks being the hottest new wedding favor in 2009, at Women Blog – Link

The Seymour Library in Auburn (New York) has a set of bookmarks with the names of popular authors and a list of suggested authors who write similar works – Link

This is the author’s experience of working with a Spanish leather craftsman to create a personalized bookmark, by Sara Ritchie at the New Brunswick Business Journal – Link

Contests :

A couple of designer note cards with bookmarks are the prizes in this comment contest, at SuzeFashion-Handmade - Link

The Delphi Public Library in Carrol County (Indiana) is participating in the WrestleMania Reading Challenge that includes creating a bookmark – Link

The Book Depository is holding a bookmark design contest to produce a set of bookmarks that will be given out with book orders – Link

The Twilight “New Moon” bookmarks are being given away as weekly prizes at the Screen Star website – Link

Contest Winners:

The winners of the County of Los Angeles (California) Public Library Bookmark Contest were announced – Link

The Daphne Public Library (Alabama) announced the winners of their Back to School Bookmark Contest – Link

The winners of the Juneau (Alaska) Public Library’s Bookmark Contest were announced – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

A Christmas Tree Bookmark crochet pattern, at Suzies Stuff – Link

A brief set of instructions for using your travel photos to make bookmarks, at Tip Deck – Link

A pattern for a tatted bookmark, at Crazy Mom Tats – Link

A stitching pattern for the ornament on a ribbon bookmark, by Kustom Krafts at Freebie Gallery – Link

A video tutorial for making a magnetic clip bookmark with stamped paper intended for use with a cookbook, by Angie Kennedy Juda at Cargo Networking – Link

A PDF you can print with a bookmark for transliterating Ugaritic Cuneiform, by Karyn Traphagen at Boulders 2 Bits – Link

Here are the newest additions to the Free Printable Bookmarks site – Link

You can download and print the Don’t Dis Darwin bookmark, distributed by the National Center for Science Education – Link

This post is for a free Cross Pattern tatted bookmark, but the site Tattyhead has quite a few free tatting patterns – Link

Download and print this Twilight “New Moon” inspired bookmark, from Designed by Ellie – Link

Download and print this bookmark from the Letters About Literature program of the Library of Congress in association with the Arkansas State Library – Link

Well, this one is different. Make a bookmark from Elmer’s Glue! At Cut Out And Keep – Link

Corner of the Library:

An etching of  The Making of a Marchioness by Frances Hodgson Burnett – Link

The character Dr. Lavendar from Around Old Chester by Margaret Deland – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

An etched metal bookmark that is a fund-raising item for Free The Slaves, a group that works with former sweat shop (slave) laborers – Link

Well, here it is: the Twilight “New Moon” Bookmark Set in Limited Edition Collector’s Case at Amazon - Link

Some handmade metal hookmarks using collected charms for ornaments, by Ciyou at Colors City – Link

Also at Colors City is this brass hookmark with star and teapot charms – Link

A metal clip bookmark wedding favor with the word love in a silver heart, at Blue Rainbow Design’s Wedding Tips & Trends Blog – Link

School kids have designed and made a set of bookmarks which are sold as part of a fundraiser for the Fredericktown Community Library – Link

A metal hookmark with charm and pearl ornament, by Min at Little Maketto – Link

If you’re into the Furry culture, you can have a bookmark made with an image of your character over at TeenyCom – Link

A variety of hand made hookmarks with beads and charms, at Beads Garden Fashion – Link

A fisherman’s silhouette is this week’s featured theme at Impressive Inscriptions – Link

Free:

The New York Federal Reserve gives away free bookmarks with information about historical figures. Follow the link and type “bookmark” in the search field, then click on Search Catalog – Link

On-Line Bookmark Collections

Mirage Bookmarks:

A new brushed stainless steel bookmark featuring an emblem from the Swiss city of Basel - Link

A set of four beautiful Victorian era chromolithography portraits of commanding officers of the British Empire – Link

Coleccionista Chilena de Marcapáginas:

Pictures from Olga’s bookmark exhibit at Santo Tomás Sede Puente Alto – Link

Mondopunt:

A set of bookmarks from the Spanish Emergency Unit – Link

Bookmarks commemorating the anniversary of Francesc Macia, the president of the Catalan Republic in 1931 – Link

A miscellaneous assortment of bookmarks (or else I couldn’t quite understand the themes) – Link

Some beautiful bookmarks from the publisher Salamander - Link

Some great bookmarks with historical themes, including some puzzle bookmarks – Link

One of Mondopunt’s video galleries of bookmarks, this one with a music theme – Link

An interesting collection of bookmarks showing the subtle variations in “the same” bookmark – Link

Bookmarks recognizing the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women – Link

Collecting Bookmarks:

A German bookmark with a cartoon of a bear swinging from the moon – Link

A magnetic clip mark with a portion of the painting  Girl With a Pearl Earring, from the Netherlands - Link

An interesting wrap around bookmark with an interlocking metal ornament, from the USA - Link

A Portuguese bookmark with a picture of the Barcelos Cockerel (and the story behind the cockerel) – Link

A graphic of the American flag with a bit of information about it – Link

A blouse and slacks on a hanger, from the USA – Link

A Japanese bookmark with a picture of Kinkaku-ji – Link

A lovely pattern on this souvenir bookmark from IaÅŸi, Romania – Link

Cartoon images of elk on this bookmark from Norway - Link

A wire clipmark with the ornament in the shape of a tulip, from the Netherlands - Link

From the British Museum, this bookmark has the image of the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses II – Link

A painted wooden bookmark from the Philippines - Link

A quote about love and a picture of a butterfly on this bookmark from the USA – Link

Forgotten Bookmarks:

An 1893 add for painless tooth extraction – Link

A 1917 quote letter for some chairs – Link

Ticket for a 1955 baseball game – Link

Label from a can of sea trout – Link

A vinyl souvenir bookmark from Petrified Creatures – Link

A note on baby formula stationary – Link

A diphtheria toxin-antitoxin certificate – Link

A couple of black and white photos in their envelope – Link

A Henry Burton poem on card stock – Link

A Spanish note with translation and very funny misspelling – Link

A note about chores, forgotten by the collector! – Link

A cute cartoon drawing – Link

A postcard from The Bird In Hand restaurant – Link

A personal note about the book in which this was found – Link

Flikr Images:

A metal hookmark with a zombie love button for an ornament, by jnhkrawczyk - Link

A Chinese Christmas miniature postcard bookmark, by CrayolaMom - Link

Intricately cut ornaments on these wooden bookmarks, photo by Creative Kismet – Link

Russian Bookmark:

The Russian Bookmark will have a booth at the International Book Fair in Moscow, Russia – Link

In December, the Russian Bookmark will have an exhibition “The World of the Bookmark” at the Anichkov Palace in Moscow, Russia – Link

Hand Made Bookmarks:

Oh my, these are stunning! Hand made fabric art bookmarks with Art Nouveau themes that were part of an exchange, posted by Gladys Love at Fibresoul - Link

A very cute sausage dog illustration on a bookmark, by Cally Jane Studio – Link

A lovely tatted bookmark in a book thong form, by Jill at Tatncrazee - Link

A ribbon bookmark with stamped ornaments, by Claudia Rosa at Pretty Pressings – Link

A set of bookmarks made as a collage from recycled materials, at Green Thing – Link

Making bookmarks from leftover scrapbook paper, by Bobbi at Blogging Along – Link

Very cute colored paper bookmark with owls on a unicycle design, by Clairexx at CraftyC’s Crafting Library – Link

This is darned clever! Using a metal bookmark with a Velcro fastener and an Altoids tin, Jo Reimer made a portable watercolor paintbox holder that slips onto the pages of her moleskin paint book – Link

Some lovely bookmarks stitched on scraps of leftover fabric, at Mare’s Runaway Needle – Link

A colorful bookthong style tatted bookmark, at Umi & Tsuru – Link

A bookmark with a silhouette image, by Laura Dresser – Link

Images from a workshop where kids made bookmarks, at Veta897 – Link

Some colorful bookmarks using a stamp and resist technique, at Ink On My Paws – Link

Also at Ink On My Paws are these bookmarks thanking the Armed Forces along with some personal stories – Link

Some sea glass beads on hookmarks – Link

A bookthong with handmade charms, at Jewelry Making by Suzdezigns – Link

A set of bookmarks with a graphic of a little girl, by Sandy Mastroni – Link

Also by Sandy Mastroni are these bookmarks with graphic images of people – Link

Elaborate embroidered magnetic bookmarks, by Linda at Quilt Cookies – Link

Some jumbo paper clip marks with colorful flower ornaments, at Taffy Crafty Creations – Link

Miscellaneous:

A Russian bookmark in the collection of Chuck Whiting at Bibliophemera - Link

A great classic Spider-Man collectible bookmark, posted by Jon K. at Spider-Man Stuff – Link

A bookmark promoting her young adult novel Tell Me A Secret, by author Holly Cupala – Link

A found bookmark that’s a promotional postcard for Chesapeake Bay and features a blue crab, at Out And About In New York City – Link

A check used as a bookmark, at We Saw A Chicken – Link

Some lovely bookmarks with pictures of elaborate paper cutouts, from the public library in Hakodate, Japan – Link

There will be a bookmark exchange in Ripoll (Spain) on December 8th – Link

2010 Bookmark Challenge:

This update from Nov. 2 includes a discussion of Jen’s baseball bookmark design and kit – Link

On Nov. 9 a marketing plan takes shape as well as plans with the NYC libraries – Link

The Nov. 16 update plans on finishing the plan for the marketing plan – Link

And on Nov. 23 a progress report on the current goals (not much to report, but I feel I’m helping with Jen’s accountability program – and thinking of my own) – Link

On the right is the bookmark I received from Changeling (aka Stephanie) and is a delightful riot of images and words. A picture of Darwin, a variety of plants, and a bunch of animals: birds, apes, a cheetah, and moths. It’s really a nicely constructed set of images, and I believe they are all decoupaged onto stiff card stock. A very fun bookmark.

To the left is the bookmark I sent to mrsb (aka Jessica). I checked her profile and found that she has a couple of pet ferrets and has an eclectic taste in music. So I borrowed the classic “evolution of man” image and drew my comic interpretation of the evolution of the ferret, complete with iPod dancing image. It was a fun opportunity to break out my infrequently used cartooning skills.

I dug through the piles on the vendor’s booth and made sure I had a sample of each type. There are a lot of mythological creatures that are part of the local folklore, and they play that up pretty heavily for the tourists. But I like the way these bookmarks have a single creature (or in some cases an attraction) along with its description on a single bookmark. They’re like little encyclopedia pages.

The bookmark on the left is promoting the graphic novel The Carp’s Eye, and it can be previewed and bought at FamineLands.com. They plan several books in the series, and I really like their classic look of their graphics.

The bookmark on the right is promoting a collective of artists whose work can be seen at LaunchSyndicate.com. They have a very fun, animation style of graphics and the bookmark just made me smile. I think it’s a great promotional piece for their collective.

You can click on each image to see a larger display.

Tango is the national dance of Argentina, and you get a flavor of that in these bookmarks. The two in the top image are tooled and painted leather. I bought them at different times, which is why I ended up with two leather bookmarks with similar themes. I think they’re both beautiful.

These two photos show the front and back of the same paper bookmark. I bought it at the airport on our way home from Argentina because I liked the description on the back as well as the photos. If you look carefully, all three bookmarks show the same oddly shaped building in the background with the sign or label Caminito. This refers to a small street in the La Boca district of Buenos Aires where Tango is rumored to have been started.

I don’t know about the accuracy of the rumor, but that romantic image is certainly reinforced for the tourists. We actually walked along those streets and saw that building. And, we also saw quite a few tango performances in the cafes lining those streets.

Of course I collect bookmarks while there. There are a lot of free promotional bookmarks available. But keep in mind that art is a central component to comic production, and many artists will also produce their work in bookmark form. I’m more than happy to buy a few bookmarks with striking artwork. Over the next few weeks I’ll be posting images and descriptions of the bookmarks I’ve collected at this year’s event – both free promotional and purchased artwork.

Here are a set of six flat bookmarks with beautiful dragon images in color. These are prints of the original artwork, and I purchased them directly from the artist. Each bookmark is 2″ x 7″ (5,1 cm x 17,8 cm) and printed on card stock with a glossy finish. You can click on each image to see a larger display.

For those who know me well, the statement “I have a lot of hobbies” is cause for laughter. Collections are a significant part of my hobby life and include bookmarks (obviously) and comic books. These two collections come together when I get the chance to attend a comic convention.

These are the bookmarks I collected when I recently attended the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con. As you can see, bookmarks are a very popular method of promotion at the convention. There are 54, non-duplicate bookmarks shown here (if you look carefully, you will find a duplicate image).

The San Diego Comic-Con International is the biggest comics related convention in North America. It’s about a lot more than comics nowadays, and is more properly referred to as a pop-culture convention. My day by day write ups and photos from the event can found at my personal blog: Day 1, Day 2, Day3, Day4, and Day5.

I thought I’d gathered every bookmark available, but I’ve recently seen some bookmark sets for sale on eBay that include items I don’t have! Some of the larger movie promoters only give out a few of their items at a given time. That’s their way to get you to come back to the booth several times over the course of the convention.

You’ll see quite a range of items being promoted. There are traditional, mainstream comics as well as independent comics. But you’ll also see books, toys, TV shows and movies, retailers, organizations, other conventions and events, web comics, and a variety of websites.

The numbers describing this convention are impressive. Over 125,000 attendance; four regular days of the convention, plus a preview evening; passes sold out in advance for each day of the convention; and the entire San Diego Convention Center filled, with overflow events at some of the major hotels. For me, the event is both exhausting and energizing. And I get the chance to make a significant deposit into my collection, along with some cool duplicates for trading.

I’m occasionally asked why I collect bookmarks, and although my answer has become more refined with time, it’s basically always been the same – bookmarks capture bits of culture. I’ll expand on that idea in a post sometime, but in this instance I believe the statement is self-evident. Each of these bits of ephemera represent a piece of our popular culture.

And all together, they’re just cool.

Enjoy!

Bookmarks In the News

Articles:

Lauren at BiblioBuffet has a great article for new collectors about buying bookmarks – Link

An interesting post about producing a bookmark to promote the author’s jewelry business, from A Planet 4 Creation – Link

I enjoyed reading this article about a Back To School Fun class where kids (grades 4 to 6) got to make erasers and bookmarks as a way to get ready for the return to school – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

At The Stampin’ Acadamy, there is a tutorial video on making a Cookbook Bookmark – Link

Step by step instructions for making a beaded book-thong, at About.Com: Parenting of Adolescents – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

I just came across this website (I don’t know how I missed it before) with a great summary of the bookmark related auctions at eBay – Link

A beautiful old dog is featured on this bookmark derived from an original painting by Melody Lea Lamb – Link

A discussion of making individualized bookmarks as favors, from Impressive Inscriptions – Link

Over at TheSamba.Com, Jester’s Parts is selling a hook-mark (hook style bookmark) with VW Beetle and Bug charms – Link

On-Line Bookmark Collections

Flikr Images:

A great collection of vintage bookmark images – Link

An interesting bookmark shaped photo of a heavily worn blue door, by Steve C – Link

A beautiful purple cluster of flowers, by Steve C – Link

Two daisy buds, by Steve C – Link

Joan Thewlis has posted a set of her photographs of bookmarks – Link

Hand Made Bookmarks:

Card stock, glitter, ribbon, and wire are all used to make this glittery bookmark, by Boots - Link

Please let me know if you come across (or have) a bookmark related link or announcement that should be included in the next Bookmark roundup.

Bookmarks In the News

Articles:

Over at the Ephemera Collector, Marty Weil has collected a set of links to tools and materials of interest to collectors of paper items – Link

Contests :

The Plainsboro Library in New Jersey is sponsoring an arts festival and they are inviting mail artists from around the world to submit a bookmark with the theme Cultural Crossroads – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

A link to literacy themed patterns for cross-stitched bookmarks and a tutorial on finishing the pieces – Link

A set of images that you can print to make you own bookmarks – Link

A nice stamped bookmark with the recipe for making it yourself – Link

On-Line Bookmark Collections

Mirage Bookmark:

A two piece puzzle bookmark that promoted the Bellegarde sur Valserine comic book festival in France – Link

Coleccionista Chilena de Marcapáginas:

Olga has a display of her bookmarks at La Biblioteca Viva del Mall Plaza La Serena in Chile – her pictures are over a set of blog entries – Link, link, link

BiblioBuffet: On Marking Books: Laine Farley:

Laine has a collection of six bookmarks with a hotel theme used to illustrate her article on bookarks used as hotel and travel promotions – Link

Marcapaginas: Natalia

Bookmarks commemorating the poet Federico Garcia Lorca – Link

Inside Books: Bookmark of the Week:

A very interesting, historic bookmark that appears to be a check-out record from a library in the London Underground – Link

Punto de Papel:

María Rosa has a post with three bookmark sets. Each set consists of illustrations based on the writings of a single author – Link

Here’s a second group of bookmark sets based on the writings of well known authors – Link

Mondopunt:

A set of bookmarks with a Solidarity theme – Link

Miscellaneous:

A beautiful, handmade paper bookmark made by Harvestorm for her husband – Link

An interesting, stitched bookmark made by Needlewoman as part of a challenge – Link

Yet another bookmark made as part of a challenge, made from paper and ribbon by Distinctly Daisy – Link

Lampwork artist Isinglas Design posted an image of the bookmark created as a promotional item – Link

A lovely, stitched bookmark with a lovely story behind it – Link