Also, this week I was lucky enough to have several readers send me links, either to a site they had found or that they had created. I really appreciate those contacts, and I encourage everyone to write me with links they think might be of interest:

alan@bookmark-collector.com

Enjoy!

Bookmarks In the News

Articles:

Wow! Lauren at BiblioBuffet has written an amazing article about an event that has always fascinated me as a bookmark collector – the 1939 New York World’s Fair. There are a lot of vintage bookmarks available from this event, and Lauren has illustrated the article with quite a few images of the bookmarks in her collection – Link

An interesting promotional event between the public library and local car dealers in Dubuque (Iowa). A car buyer can present the dealer with a special bookmark they obtained from the library, and the car dealer will donate $100 to the library – Link

Spurred by the recent flooding in his hometown, Derek Dahlsad at the Collector’s Corner wrote a post about natural disasters and the collector – Link

Simon Quicke at Inside Books laments the lack of bookmarks in the world – Link

Contests :

Some interesting travel bookmarks by Etsy artist byvicINK are the prize of a contest described at Steals and Deals – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

Instructions on making a hookmark with beaded ornament using Soft flex wire, at Soft Flex Company – Link

A discussion and instructions for woven bookmarks with tatted lace edges, by Noreen Crone-Findlay at BlissTree - Link

Wow, an interesting (and involved) workshop on using images to create a waterfall bookmark, at Suzanne’s Card Crafts – Link

A free-flow discussion along with instructions on creating a bookthong with beaded ornaments, including the problems that caused a redesign with new materials, at Just A Tish – Link

Instructions for making a paper collage bookmark, by Deb Marie Phillips at Be Creative – Link

Instructions on making a corner bookmark from card stock with a ribbon embellishment, by Barb Mullikin at Stampin’ IS mMy Job – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

Russian Bookmark is an interesting site passed on to me by Laine Farley. They are promoting a series of hand-made bookmarks as Russian Souvenirs and plan on using master craftsmen to produce the collection. Nothing is currently for sale, and the site is still building its content, but it’s still worth a visit even in this early stage – Link

An interesting set of metal clip bookmarks with ornaments that feature images from the covers of the Twighlight novels, by CreativeRampage – Link

A laminated bookmark with tree graphics, by MarkMyWords - Link

Julia Guthrie is having a sale of her bookmarks with her original designs, at East of the Sun West of the Moon – Link

Etsy:

Monica Marks is a new shop on Etsy that specializes in bookmarks made from a collage of images and materials. And they’re laminated for a long life of service – Link

On-Line Bookmark Collections

Marcapaginas: Natalia

Natalia has a set of images and a link to a site that shares items found in books (found bookmarks) – Link

Mondopunt:

A mixed bag of bookmarks, from various publishers, bookstores, and promotions – Link

Six bookmarks from the Dreamworks film Monsters vs. Aliens – Link

Nine promotional bookmarks for romance novels – Link

Flikr Images:

A picture of a bookmark with a File Save icon, by sonde23.de – Link

The image of a woman and her reflection form an interesting bookmark shape, by hollyjsch - Link

A great looking promotional bookmark for Myopic Books in Chicago (Illinois) – Link

An image of Lewis Hamilton that will be used in a bookmark, by Steve C – Link

Hand Made Bookmarks:

A set of newly finished bookmarks, at Baja Turtle Design – Link

Two bookmarks made for a school competition, by Janice Tan and her sister at Share My Life With Me .. – Link

2009 Bookmark Challenge:

Expanding on her mission of combining literacy, needlework, and bookmarks, Jen at Needle and ThRead discusses bookmarks as metaphore, giving some examples and asking for some new ones – Link

A new technique for finishing a fabric bookmark that creates a pocket for storing notes – Link

An additional idea on creating a pocket bookmark – Link

Some general discussion of linking librarians, needlework shops, and bookmarks – Link

Etsy has been around the longest, and has the largest selection of hand crafted items. Simply typing in the search term “bookmark” returns over 13 000 items currently for sale, and over 100 bookmarks a day are added to the site. You do have to register to buy, but it’s free to register. There are thousands of artists selling their crafts.

Art Fire is the relative new kid on the block. Typing in the term “bookmark” returns over 500 entries. It’s still a beta site and so some controls are a bit unrefined – for instance I couldn’t see how to list items from my search in the order that they were listed (i.e. what items have been most recently added).

These are the sites that I most often connect with, but I’d be interested in hearing about other handcraft sites. Leave a comment with any links and I’ll post them in a future update.

Magnetic Clip Bookmark

The magnetic clip bookmark contains two magnets, one at each end of strip of paper, cardboard, or other material that will allow a fold in the middle of the strip. The strip is folded over the page to be marked, and the two magnets clip together marking the page. The magnetic field between the two magnets goes through the marked page, and the magnets remain inside the closed book.

Link

Magnetic Ribbon Clip Bookmark

This bookmark is a combination of the Ribbon Bookmark and the Magnetic Clip Bookmark. What distinguishes it from the regular magnetic clip is that the magnets do not attract through the pages of the book. Instead they lock the ribbon into a loop around the book at the marked page. Only a portion of the ribbon is left in the book, none of the magnets.

Link

Elastic Strap Bookmark

This Bookmark looks similar to a Book Thong or Ribbon Bookmark because it’s made from a strip of elastic with an ornament at one end and a loop in the other.  The elastic wraps around the book and across the marked page, with the loop at one end wrapping around the ornament at the other end. The ornament sits outside of the closed book.

Link

Book Darts

A Book Dart is similar to a Clipmark or a Slit Bookmark in that the two flat parts of the bookmark clip over the marked page. What distinguishes the Book Dart is that the shape allows the clip to point at a position on the page being marked. The Book Dart not only marks a particular page, but it also marks a position on that page.

Link

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As always, I’d be interested in hearing about alternate names or additional types that I’ve missed. I can see that I’ll have to revisit this topic from time to time.

Here are some fairly common types and the names I’ve found for them so far:

Flat Bookmark

The basic flat describes the vast majority of free, give-away, promotional bookmarks. It’s intended to be used by just sticking it between the pages of a book, perhaps sticking out a bit from the top. In addition to the paper give-away, the flat form can be found in all materials: leather, wood, metal, plastic, and fabric. It may be printed, carved, sewn, hammered, painted, knitted, tatted, burned, cast, or any other form of fabrication and surface decoration.

Oddly, despite its popularity (or maybe because of its popularity) I haven’t seen that many names for this type of bookmark. If there’s no adjective associated with the word bookmark, we just assume that its a flat.

Ribbon Bookmark

Silk ribbons are some of the oldest bookmarks, used since the sixteenth century.

Ribbon bookmark is the only term I’ve ever used for this style, although in many ways they are similar to a book thong. The distinguishing characteristics are that it’s constructed from a ribbon rather than a cord, and there’s no more than a single bangle attached at one end of the ribbon. Once there’s a bangle on both ends, we are in book thong territory.

Another unique attribute is that this type is often built into books. Many a bible or technical reference has had a ribbon sewn into its spine or cover because it is so useful.

Book Thong

I’ve seen the term book thong used more and more often recently.

Similar to the ribbon bookmark, the thong has some sort of bauble attached at both ends of a cord which are meant to hang out of the top and bottom of a book.

Hookmark

The hookmark, or hook bookmark, is a new term to me. It’s also the term that motivated this post. I’ve seen the term shepherd’s hook also used for this style.

The hookmark has the figurative element (which is attached to the end of the hook) hang over the spine of the book. The figurative element is either a fixed sculptural piece or a dangling bauble.

Clipmark

The clipmark, or clip bookmark, has some form of clip that fastens onto the page being marked. The clip may be a paperclip or a pattern cut from metal, plastic, or wood that serves as a clip.

The clipmark presses the page between an inner loop of material and an outer loop, often leaving an embossed impression on the page.

Slit Bookmark

The slit bookmark is different from the clipmark in that the slit fits over a page, pinching it between the two flat portions of the mark.

I’ve seen this type of bookmark also described as a clipmark, obviously confusing it with the previous style of bookmark. I think these two styles are very different and need unique names, and I’d love to learn a better, more distinctive set of terms.

Cornermark

The idea behind using a cornermark is that it can be slipped over the corner of your current page in a book. Shown here are a metal bookmark and a leather bookmark, but paper and other materials are also used in this form.

Spring Bookmark

There are a lot of variations on the spring type of bookmark. The one shown here (which is my favorite bookmark to use) clips to the back cover of a book, and the spring arm clips against the page that’s currently being saved.

Due to the structural requirements for the bookmark to function properly, this style is typically made of metal.

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Leave a comment with your favorite names, below. Even if you’re just affirming the names I’ve listed here, I’d like to know how commonly they are being used, so feel free to add a comment that just says “ditto”.

And if you object to certain names, I’d like to hear that also. I indirectly heard something about book thong being an embarrassing term, so if there’s strong opposition to it, we can certainly come up with a different one.

This was a fairly ad hoc list, so I’m sure I missed some categories. And I’ll bet we can pretty quickly get into a broad set of sub-categories and exceptional cases. Please share any additional categories or interesting sub-divisions that you’ve identified or feel should be highlighted.

I think this could lead us to an interesting Bookmark Taxonomy.

Enjoy!

Bookmarks In the News

Articles:

A write-up on the West Fargo Public Library receiving bookmarks from Nordic Needles as part of the Needle and ThREAD: Stitching for Literacy; 2008 Bookmark Challenge – Link

The El Dorado County Library is trying to fins a patron’s lost bookmark – Link

In this week’s On Marking Books article from BiblioBuffet, Laine tells the history of her National Geographic Society bookmark which was recycled from the cloth of a historic hot air balloon – Link

Contests :

The Forrest City (Arkansas) Public Library’s bookmark contest has its deadline on Friday, June 13 – Link

Contest Winners:

Andrea Thomas won the Grades 9 through 12 category of the 2008 Bookmark Design Contest sponsored by the Johnson County (Kansas) Public Library – Link

Adit Agarwal won the preschool to kindergarten category and Anna Clemens was one of the winners in the third to fourth grade category of the same Johnson County Public Library 2008 Bookmark Design Contest – Link

Swaps:

A Swap-bot bookmark swap coordinated by Lydia Abigail, for Europeans only (must be a member of swap-bot – free) – Link

A little bit different swap, one handmade bookmark and one tea bag! Posted at Swap-bot by shelly96734 – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

A pattern for a beaded bookmark from RaniMaria – Link

A nice little tutorial on making a woven bookmark from yarn, by HomeSchoolBlogger – Link

Natalia at Marcapaginas provides a link for a website about children’s books and includes a link for a free, downloadable bookmark – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

Groovy Crafts completed the last of their 10 handmade bookmarks and they’re available at their Etsy store – Link

A gold cottonwood leaf bookmark from Dazzling Lady – Link

Another on of Linda Layden’s beautiful scrimshaw on recovered piano key ivory bookmarks – Link

Anne Julie has another bookmark available with one of her images – Link

Another Anne Julie bookmark, this image includes a baby jackalope – Link

A vintage letter opener/bookmark made in Louisiana – Link

Free Bookmarks

This is interesting. Jace Scribbles is a book review blog, and as a celebration of her first year, she’s giving away 4 lovely bookmarks (wood veneer with laser engraving) in a random drawing – Link

On-Line Bookmark Collections

Inside Books: Bookmark of the Week:

A promotional bookmark by Godstone Farms for their website – Link

Mondopunt:

Once again, I’m having a little trouble with the translation at this site, but there is a fine set of bookmarks that I believe are available for sale (12 Euro for the set?) – Link

Flikr Images:

An image by catimini, there are other images in the photoset – Link

Including this image of a railing, also from catimini - Link

Picture of an interesting bookmark made with a notepad and clip, by elinjanne - Link

Ki.Ka67 has a new bookmark image with a burst of colorful flowers – Link

Miscellaneous:

Images of new bookmarks promoting the release of two books by the late Romance author Dawn Thompson – Link

Several pictures of a very cool looking, spiral-clip style bookmark posted by alonelovex - Link

A lovely cross-stitched bookmark on a very interesting frame, at Sara’s Simple Stitching – Link

A stamped paper bookmark card created by Magnolia Design – Link

A handmade, felted bookmark by Orit – Link

A stamped paper bookmark by Laura at Lolo Schpadora – Link

A stamped paper bookmark created in response to a challenge, by Nessy - Link

Michelle created this card with a detachable bookmark – Link

A lovely, knitted leaf bookmark by Pax *knits – Link

A hand drawn bookmark of an anthropomorphic fox, by Tod at JaxPad - Link

Enjoy!

Bookmarks In the News

Articles:

Over at BiblioBuffet, Lauren is writing about Carrie Chapman Catt, inspired by a silk bookmark with the suffragette’s image – Link

Kat Rocha has a guest blog entry at Needle and ThREAD reflecting on books and bookmarks – Link

Chas Newkey-Burden, who writes a blog for the Guardian in the UK has a posting about bookmarks – Link

I had never looked at the Bookmark entry in Wikipedia until this week – Link

Contests :

The Charleston County Library (South Carolina) is holding its annual Children’s Book Week bookmark contest – Link

Contest Winners:

Swansea Mall in Massachusetts announced the winners of their 2008 Bookmark Contest – Link

The La Crosse County Library (Massachusetts) announced their 2008 Bookmark Design Contest winners – and all the first-place winning entries can be seen on their site as well as all their branches – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

Some bookmark designs you can print, color, and then laminate for Mother’s Day – Link

A tutorial for making wooden bookmarks – Link

Some paper bookmarks made and personalized for teacher gifts – Link

A diamond pattern lace bookmark – Link

A book-thong style bookmark made with ribbon and beads – Link

Over at Make and Takes there are instructions on making a bookmark from those strip of photos you get at a photo booth – Link

Printable pieces and instructions on making a photo-bookmark – Link

A printable bookmark created to promote a graphic novel – Link

A set of instructions for making soft bookmarks with a toddler (Warning: the text is a bit rough to read – it appears to be a poor translation into English) – Link

Over at Sprite Stitch there’s a cross stitch pattern for the Zelda Triforce bookmark – Link

Here’s a crochet pattern for a Triple Chevron Bookmark – Link

Here’s a pattern for an origami bookmark, located at (Another) 52 Books – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

Melody Lea Lamb has a new bookmark for sale from her painting of a baby bunny – Link

A colorfully painted bookmark from Mexico – Link

A set of hook style bookmarks, handmade with glass and metal beads, by Two Girls Jewelry – Link

A metal bookmark, colored and shaped like a seashell, made to be a wedding favor – Link

Free Bookmarks

Boscov’s in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania is giving away a self-exam reminder bookmark with a $1 donation to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation – Link

A free bookmark (and magnet) celebrating the launch of the author’s book, available in Autralia – Link

A promotional bookmark to be given away by Ching Teoh with every purchase from her Etsy store – Link

The library in Burlington, Vermont is giving away a bookmark that lists several book related websites – Link

On-Line Bookmark Collections

Inside Books: Bookmark of the Week:

Yay! Simon is back with a bookmark from the Art Institute of Chicago – Link

Mirage Bookmarks:

A beautiful set of bookmarks from the Swiss chocolate factory Kohler - Link

Coleccionista Chilena de Marcapáginas:

To celebrate International Book Day, a school took some of Olga’s bookmarks and created a fun and colorful display – Link

Some photos from her display at the Central Library of the University of Santiago (USACH) – Link

Mondopunt:

Here are bookmarks from publishing houses which are inspired by books that they publish – Link

Flikr Images:

A colorful bookmark with a baby’s photo made for a bookmark challenge – Link

A little embroidered bookmark – Link

The back of the previous bookmark (a very nice fabric) – Link

Miscellaneous:

A lovely, beaded bookmark in a bookmark-thong style by The Holistic Knitter – Link

A beautiful bookmark made by Deb for an internet swap – Link

A promotional bookmark from the company Tomorrow shown by Grain Edit – Link

I don’t know what Chocobo Tales is, but here’s a felt bookmark that it inspired – Link

Over at Tatting Chic, a couple of tatted bookmarks made for an exchange – Link

The American Crafts Studio had their design team create a set of bookmarks which they have on display – Link

A promotional bookmark for the author rather than the specific book – Link

A knitted bookmark by 1SexyGramma – Link

A very ornate bookmark designed as a thank-you gift by Noelle Garrett – Link

I believe the chinchillas on this bookmark are cross-stitched – Link

A couple of crocheted bookmarks at Biblio’s Blog – Link

I’ve included a few more sources in my search for links, and I’ve organized them under some new headings.

If you have anything you’d like me to include in future entries, or any feedback in general, you can add a comment below or send an email to alan@bookmark-collector.com

These entries are from December 2007 as well as January and early February 2008.

Bookmarks In the News

Editorials:

Provocative little blog posting titled Bookmarks Are For People That Hate Money by Ben Allen – Link

A nice tribute to Norman Mailer by Guy Somerset that leads to a discussion of bookmarks – Link

Frank X. Roberts discusses of the origins of the bookmark at BiblioBuffet - Link

Designs:

A beautiful bookmark commemorating the California Genealogical Society’s 110th Anniversary (how do I get one?) – Link

In South Africa, a Lifesaving Bookmark was designed to remind reading parents to check on their kids at swimming venues – Link

A bookmark design which uses flexible organic light emitting diode (FOLED) technology (cool!) – Link

Another design for a bookmark that highlights a word position in a book – Link

Jackie Blaum, a fifth grader, invents Jackie’s Dry Erase Bookmark – Link

Upcoming Contests :

The Friends of Hickory Public Library in North Carolina is holding a bookmark contest for children in grades K-8 – Link

A Mail-Art Competition sponsored by the Plainsboro Library in New Jersey with the theme Cultural Crossroads – Link

A Bookmark Design Contest sponsored by The Book Wish Foundation – Link

The Davenport Public Library in Iowa is sponsoring the Cornerstone of Downtown bookmark design contest – Link

Contest Winners:

Daphne Public Library in Alabama – Link

Hit The Books program sponsored by the Omaha Royals in Nebraska – Link

Hit The Books program sponsored by the Lexington Legends in Kentucky – Link

Design A Bookmark Competition sponsored by the Clare County Library in Ireland – Link

Swaps:

This is a link showing the results from a bookmark swap sponsored by Crafty Daisies (and these are beautiful!)- Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

Clever and fun photo-bookmark design in Zakka Life Crafts blog – Link

Attractive crochet bookmark in the shape of a key at CraftBits – Link

Needlepoint bookmark with a snowflake image at About.com: Needlepoint – Link

Bead and Wire on a metal bookmark hook at About.com: Jewelry Making – Link

Another bead and wire bookmark, this one of a butterfly at CraftBits - Link

A video on making a magnetic bookmark by Patti Behan on her blog – Link

A small felt bookmark designed by Melissa Goodsell at One Crafty Momma – Link

Paper and magnet bookmark in a greeting card by Bethany Paull – Link

Print, cut, and fold these files to create a set of bookmarks at 4Kids – Link

A discussion of cross stitch methods for making bookmarks – Link

Project for making a ribbon bookmark from Scrapnextras - Link

Handy little bookmark made with blank pages for taking notes from DIYPlanner – Link

Download and print a bookmark with information about fleas at HealthyChild – Link

Another discussion about making bookmarks as wedding favors – Link

Another download and print bookmark, this one from Audrey Jeanne’s Expressions – Link

A very cool bookmark and card with a discussion on how it was made – Link

A downloadable paper template for a T-Shirt shaped bookmark at Crafty Beats – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

Some lovely little angle bookmarks at Drooling Over Yarn – Link

A variety of custom bookmarks using crystals and charms at Planet 4 Creation – Link

Beautiful engraved butterfly bookmarks, hand colored from Bernard Maisner – Link

A line of bookmarks with some nice calligraphy at Bookworm Bookmarks – Link

A position marking bookmark at Irregular People – Link

On-Line Bookmark Collections

BiblioBuffet: On Marking Books: Lauren Roberts:

A beautiful bookmark discussion from the 1928 Olympic Games – Link

Antique bookmarks related to health – Link

Two bookmarks from the golden days of NBC Radio – Link

Interesting bookmark issued as propaganda during World War II – Link

A discussion of celebrating Christmas with bookmarks along with two examples – Link

A bookmark prompts a discussion of stockings! – Link

Bookmarks and fragrances – Link

BiblioBuffet: On Marking Books: Laine Farley:

Bookmarks from Vietnam and Cambodia – Link

Old and new bookmark calendars – Link

An interesting discussion (with examples) of bookmarks as Christmas craft – Link

Punt Per Punt:

A lovely top index that points to a set of group listings, organizing Nuria’s collection – Link

Nuria’s set of Christmas themed bookmarks – Link

Marcapaginas.info:

Happy Pig bookmark from the Czech Republic – Link

New Year’s Resolution – Link

The Footprints of Time, published bookmarks froma graphic art competition – Link

Angels – Link

Carnival – Link

Mozart – Link

Lego’s 50th anniversary – Link

A lovely set of bell towers – Link

Valentine’d Day – Link

A collection of hearts – Link

Clocks – Link

Inside Books: Bookmark of the Week:

National Bookstart Day – Link

London Transport Museum – Link

Tintin from The Sceptre of Okkatar – Link

Paddington Bear – Link

Highlighting three bookmarks for the end of the year – Link

Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs at the O2 Dome in Greenwich – Link

Terracotta Army at the British Museum – Link

Tintin by Herge, magnetic bookmark – Link

From the home of Washington Irving, author of Sleepy Hollow – Link

Planting Trees, a free bookmark from the local library – Link

Mr. Bump from the Mr. Men series – Link

Punto de Papel:

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – Link

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets – Link

Happy New Year and 3 Bookmarks from Venice – Link

A couple of puzzle bookmark sets, titled Gracias Rosa – Link

The Four Houses from Harry Potter – Link

Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe – Link

Flikr Images:

A lovely bookmark – Link

Watercolor flowers – Link

Miscellaneous:

A couple of beautiful, vintage Disney bookmarks midway into this post of collectible – Link

—————-

Whew! Back again in a week with (hopefully) a more manageable list.

However, the real treat were those posts to which he has added a caption. Cdavid (hmm, is there an agreed upon capitalization scheme for user names?) has a great sense of humor, and I stopped to chuckle at a couple of entries. On one I stopped and laughed out loud.

I recommend his website. It’s a quick and fun and I’ll be adding it to the link list.

They have a column on collecting bookmarks, called On Marking Books. I’ve only read a few articles so far, but they cover a range of topics, from focusing on a particular bookmark (it’s history and cultural significance), to categories of bookmarks, to methods of collecting and displaying bookmarks.

Their writers on bookmarks are Lauren Roberts (a writer and book reviewer who is listed as the editor of the website), Laine Fairly (a librarian with an impressive collection of over 3000 bookmarks), and Frank X. Roberts (an English teacher and librarian whose bio indicates an expertise in medieval bookmarks). Their short bios are quite impressive, and I’ll be writing more about them in later posts.

Oh yeah, they also have other writers reviewing books.

One major focus of the group is the monthly bookmark exchange. Basically, all those interested sign up for the next month’s exchange, indicating interest in categories such as: sets of 5 free bookmarks (random); 5 free bookmarks on a particular subject (October’s subject is Music); 5 bought paper bookmarks; 1 bought leather; 1 bought metal; 1 bought from a craftsman; 1 antique; or 1 personally handmade bookmark. At the beginning of the month, partners are selected from the list by the leader of the group and exchanges are made. All of those participating seem quite enthusiastic about the exchanges. I look forward to being part of the October exchange.

There’s also a fair amount of information exhanged. The bookmark exhibition I discussed in a previous post was pointed out in a messages from Laine. I’ll also be putting up posts about other items I’ve seen in the forums. So, even if you’re not interested in the exchanges (and why wouldn’t you be?), there’s good reason to just lurk.