by Catherine Barbaro

Created on: September 17, 2008

Bookmarks offer a tremendous opportunity to express thoughts and opinions, to advertise, to encourage someone, to brag, to celebrate a moment, promote an event or to simply create a small piece of art. Bookmarks are fast artistic expressions that can utilize a wide variety of resources that most people have at their fingertips. It is creativity at is purest and recycling at its core.

Bookmarks can be made from fabric, leaves, scraps of paper, photographs, snippets of lace, old coins, computer artwork, children's art projects that clutter refrigerator doors, recycled wrapping paper or newsprint, old magazines, old book pages that are too damaged to keep in their original form, or anything that should be memorialized.

Start by deciding what you want to say. If you have a cause you support and want to promote, create a little vignette of a few words, a mini-picture, a web site address and a dramatic title. Put them together on the computer by cutting, pasting and reducing the size or arrange them by hand on a bookmark-size piece of cardstock (1 inch by 5 inches).

Play with the design to create a look that satisfies you. If you have a lot to say, then make two the exact size so they can be placed back to back to create a two-sided bookmark. Print your bookmark on cardstock weight paper and use small pieces of scrapbook tape or double-sided tape to attach the information. Cut the bookmark to the size of a bookmark, glue or tape the two sides together. With access to a laminator or peel and stick laminating sheets, the bookmark can be preserved for a very long future. A hole-punch at the top and an added scrap of ribbon, lace or fabric create a finishing touch. Keep them for yourself or give them away.

To celebrate a moment or memorialize a child's artwork, scan the item onto your computer and shrink the finished picture down in size. A quick trip to the copy shop can accomplish the same thing too. Those little art projects that come home with finger painted fingerprints are great to cut down in size and share with grandparents, aunts and uncles. Utilize those tiny school pictures that come as part of a larger package and add a photo. Laminate and you have a great gift or keepsake.

Celebrate a friend's achievement by incorporating an event or news clipping into a bookmark. Decorate with small bits of torn tissue paper in bright colors or a small dried flower or leaf. Preserve the snippet of lace from a grandmother's wedding dress, add a mini picture and make several for your family members. Put a recipe on a bookmark and decorate.

Bookmarks quickly and easily come together. These little pieces of art can articulate who you are and what you believe. They can advertise your business or promote a cause. They can show off your skills or brag on your children. They can just communicate appreciation and let someone know that they are valued. Bookmarks express the heart of the creator and carry their message as a reminder each time they are handled.

Learn more about this author, Catherine Barbaro.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.