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

Enjoy!

Bookmarks In the News

Articles:

At BiblioBuffet, Lauren writes about the recovered “Hitler” bookmark from a bookmark collector’s perspective – Link

And here’s a follow up article about the “Hitler” bookmark, with current information on the court proceedings – Link

Every year at this time, San Juan College Library (Oklahoma) hosts a wonderful charity event called the Gift of Reading Tree. A tree is decorated with bookmarks, each of which has a different child’s name, age, gender and interests listed so that someone can pick a bookmark and then buy a book for that child – Link

While describing a handmade bookmark, the author discusses fitting art into a full life – Link

Contest Winners:

The winners of the Rapides Parish Library (Louisiana) 2008 Bookmark Contest have been posted along with pictures of their winning entries – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

This is a great tutorial on making a metal hookmark from copper wire, by Carla at Feathered Fibers – Link

This German site has a PDF with a set of bookmarks that you can download and print – Link

Here are a set of bookmark templates made by Lorri at Lorri’s Scraps – Link

Towards the end of this post, you’ll find a bookmark that includes a calendar for December, by Crystal at Inspired Mommie Designs – Link

Some instructions on making a Christmas Snowflake paper bookmark, at All Home Improve – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

I had a chance to visit the Simply Said Reading Accessories site (thanks Debra), and they have a wide selection of lovely paper bookmarks, half marks (half height bookmarks), and beaded book thongs – Link

Sue Hawkins has a variety of kits for making embroidered bookmarks (see an example in Handmade Bookmarks, below) – Link

A metal swan bookmark favor for weddings, at Little Things Favors – Link

A line of bookmarks available at the German site Lesezeichen-Laden – Link

Musical Notes Bookmark Favors at Moments of Elegance – Link

Lil’ Duck Duck has these red snowflake design, seasonal bookmarks as well as other colors available – Link

This is interesting – a decorative spoon flattened into a bookmark, at Laurie’s Charming Designs – Link

On-Line Bookmark Collections

Marcapaginas: Natalia

Eighteen (18) Christmas related bookmarks – Link

And an additional set of eighteen (18) Christmas themed bookmarks – Link

Punto de Papel:

A huge set (I counted 27) of travel related bookmarks – Link

Mondopunt:

A big collection of bookmarks commemorating the 200th anniversary of Napoleon invading Spain – Link

A mix of items, from additional Kleenex promotional bookmarks to a three-part puzzle bookmark for the 85th anniversary of a bookstore – Link

Flikr Images:

A beautiful sunset scene by Royston Vasey – Link

Hand Made Bookmarks:

Amanda completed a Sue Hawkins bookmark design (see above, in Bookmarks for Sale), at Stitching Stuff - Link

A stamped paper bookmark made by Stamp Owl – Link

Another stamped paper bookmark at Storage Units, Ink & More – Link

Miscellaneous:

A clip style, metal bird bookmark, at Ozowiezo - 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

Bookmarks In The News

Articles:

Lauren at BibliBuffet has a nice article about phonographs which was inspired by a lovely pair of bookmarks – Link

An article about how Jason Milam started selling his hand-crafted metal bookmarks online (his sales link is in the Bookmarks For Sale section, below) – Link

Contest Winners:

Downtown Books in Craig, Colorado announces the winners of their bookmark design contest – Link

St. Columba’s College in Ireland is publishing a bookmark entered in a contest sponsored by their art department – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

A cross-stitch pattern for a thistle bookmark at CameoRose’s Stitcher’s Studio – Link

Nice little blog entry discussing how the author makes her business cards more useful by making them into bookmarks – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

Novel Accessories sells hand-made, metal bookmarks – Link

On-Line Collections

Marcapaginas: Natalia:

A set of bookmarks with images of marine animals – Link

To celebrate International Women’s Day, here is wonderful set of bookmarks with women’s images – Link

Inside Books: Bookmark of the Week

An alligator bookmark which opens and closes its mouth – Link

Punto de Papel

A beautiful set of art bookmarks – Link

Miscellaneous

Some designs for a bookmark that will be used to promote a gallery show for Alyssa Stepien – Link

Bookmarks in the News

Articles:

Lauren at BiblioBuffet has an interview with the owner of Papilionaceous, a silk weaving company which manufactures a line of bookmarks – Link

Swaps:

Tammy (cupcake) at Crafter’s Community is sponsoring a book and bookmark swap – Link

Contests:

The Ransom Library in Michigan is sponsoring a bookmark design contest – Link

Contest Winners:

The winners of the 14th annual bookmark contest sponsored by Wyoming Agriculture In The Classroom – Link

The Crowell Public Library in San Marino (CA) announced the winners of their bookmark contest and the publishing schedule for the winning bookmarks – Link

Make Your Own Bookmark

Crochet a sock monkey bookmark at CraftBits - Link

Noreen at at Hankering For Yarn has a clear set of instructions to create a very cool, spool knitted bookmark in the shape of a rat (commemorating the Year of the Rat) – Link

Bookmarks For Sale

Etsy:

Mini-Laminated Bookmark of The Eccentric Lady from AnneJulie in France – Link

Miscellaneous:

Papilionaceous Ltd. is a small, silk weaving company with a beautiful line of bookmarks (see the BiblioBuffet interview mentioned above) – Link

On-Line Collections

Inside Books: Bookmark Of The Week:

Interesting photo of Lionel Walter Rothschild in a carriage drawn by zebras – Link

Mirage Bookmark:

A lovely paper bookmark with an illustration of Virginia Woolf – Link

A bookmark made from natural materials by Natalia Crespo – Link

Marcapaginas: Natalia:

A set of bookmarks featuring kissing – Link

A set with the theme of holding hands – Link

A discussion on books about the holocaust, but also a promotional bookmark for Maus, a milestone graphic novel about the holocaust – Link

A large set of bookmarks with horse images – Link and Link

Another set with images of ships and boats – Link

In celebration of his winning the Best Actor category in this year’s Oscars, a bookmark with an image of Javier Bardem – Link

Marcapaginas: Rosa:

A set of beautiful, promotional bookmarks from the film The Brothers Grimm – Link

A colorful set of bookmarks from The Beatles’ movie The Yellow Submarine – Link

A set from Rosa’s visit to Rome – Link

A bookmark from Paris – Link

And a pair from Versailles – Link

All of her products are bookmarks, but none fit the more traditional categories. For instance, she makes the BookBuddy (pictured above), a reading pillow which holds open the book you’re reading and rests comfortably on your lap, and she makes a line of Bookcovers. These are very well made from beautiful materials.

Her BookWorm product is a very elegant paperweight that’s used to hold your book open while reading. This is a category of bookmark that I’ve never really thought about before. I can’t recall having seen another product like this, and I’m interested in finding similar items. Anyone out there collecting bookweights?

Amanda’s 4-Ribbon Bookmarks (left) and her GlitterMarks (right) are closer to the more traditional bookmarks, but have unique features all their own. Again, the materials are beautiful and the items are very well made.

I’m lucky enough to have a couple of these items, and they are really lovely. They add a touch of elegance to reading a favorite book.

Link

Beaded Bookmarks from South Africa

Marcia Francois makes a set of beaded bookmarks in the book-thong style. I’ve linked to her blog where she posts images of her recent creations. She has quite a few available for purchase from her site.

Link

Walnut Bookmark

This is a nice looking wrap-around magnetic bookmark made out of walnut and designed by Matt Carr. It’s available through Interior Design Room. There’s not much of a description, but it’s a very elegant looking bookmark

Link

Impressive Inscriptions

This company, Impressive Inscriptions, makes customized bookmarks for a variety of occasions.

They advertise 3 different sizes with over 500 different designs to which you can add customized captions.

Link

Velvet Bookmark – Purple Pump

This is a very opulent bookmark. The image of a purple pump in a brass setting is mounted on a purple ribbon. It comes in a purple cardboard gift box and is priced at $25 from the The Spoon Sisters.

Link

For those interested in another outlet for your swapping obsession, I want to let you know about Swap-bot. I’ve recently joined their swap-facilitating site, and have participated in several of their bookmark swaps.

Basically, once you join there are approximately 500 active swaps you may participate in. All of them are arranged by other Swap-bot members, not the hosts of the site. Swap-bot just provides the tools and the community to facilitate its members in arranging their own swaps.

The types of swaps vary wildly. I’ve participated in exchanges of free bookmarks, of handmade bookmarks (any type), and exchanges of very specific, handmade bookmarks (book thongs, with guidance on how to make them). However, there are LOTS of other swaps covering a huge range of interests. For example: hand-dyed yarns, photographs, craft supplies, cookies, CD’s, advent calendars, hand-made items, artists’ cards, etc. Some have elaborate, multiple steps: I read about a swap where a stuffed animal is sent to each person who then takes a picture of the item at a local site & sends it on to the next person: the originator gets the stuffed animal back along with all its photos.

A swap is started by any member, who is then the coordinator for that swap. The swap has a sign-up deadline. Everyone that is signed up (and approved by the coordinator) by the deadline is matched with partners and there is another deadline for sending the swap items. The recipients then rate their parters items (it’s a simple rating system – did the received item meet the criteria, not meet the criteria, or exceed the criteria – but it all gets expressed as stars and hearts).

As a member, you receive a “score” based on this feedback from your swap partners. Some swaps are limited to members with minimum scores, and others are open to everyone, including newbies.

I’m sure this sounds more complicated than it really is. I found it to be easy, and a lot of fun. And it’s a great way to expand your collection while meeting new swap partners.

Link

The article describes how he came to producing these bookmarks and also a bit about how he does it. This kind of hand-crafted production is somewhat rare in the US and I love finding examples where I can.

He makes a silhouette style of bookmark cutout from cherry wood. I’ve found an online distributer of his work and a picture of some samples.

Link

Link