At last! A bookmark that won’t slide out of place and get lost in the depths of kids’ backpacks (or yours). Bookmarks are key tools in raising readers, and we’ve got you covered with this super-simple, two-step bookmark craft that makes adorable, functional page markers in minutes flat. All you need are some simple materials and a bit of creativity—or just start with our examples.
You can easily turn these elastic bookmarks into an awesome holiday craft, gift, or party favor by decorating them with holiday colors or shapes cut to fit your theme. There are endless possibilities when it comes to embellishments: We picked a few of our favorites from craft-drawer staples, but they’ll be cute with just about anything you have on hand! This kid-friendly DIY book craft is perfect for all ages. You’ll just want to supervise kids using the hot glue gun.
Materials:
- Elastic headbands (make sure they’re the flat elastic variety)
- Hot glue gun
- Embellishments of your choice!
Embellishment Ideas: There are so many options out there, but here are three recommendations to get you started!
- Buttons: Maybe you have some mismatched buttons around the house … send your kids on a scavenger hunt through the junk drawers!
- Craft-foam letters/shapes: Cut out letters or shapes from craft foam.
- Paper flowers: Make one of our paper flowers out of old book pages. After all, what better way to decorate a bookmark than with upcycled book pages?
Have other ideas in mind? Please share in the comments below—we would love to hear what you come up with!
Cost: Parents of kids who like to pull their hair back often have one (or a few!) too many elastic hairbands around, in which case this is the perfect way to clean out that bathroom cabinet. Otherwise, you can purchase a pack of headbands online or at a local drugstore for about $5. Glue guns are high on our list of must-have craft tools and average around $10. Get creative with your embellishments, and that part should cost you nothing!
Step 1: The first step is just to plug in your glue gun and let it heat up while you gather or make your embellishments. Remember: Kids will need your supervision for the glue gun. If you are making your own embellishments, go ahead and do that now.
Step 2: Next, simply use the hot glue gun to attach your embellishments along one half of the headband. Make sure you don’t use more than half, so there’s a flat side to go inside your book—in fact, I recommend covering a little less than half. You can choose to add a lot of embellishments lined up close together, or you can space out just a few cute touches. Tip: If you’re spacing them out, you may want to mark where you want them to go, so as to get an even result. Let the glue dry fully, and then your new bookmark will be ready to use.
While this DIY book craft is joyously simple, you can get as creative as you want in making beautiful embellishments. But we love that even with just a few buttons, you can turn out a super-cute bookmark to save a page in your next book. With all our bookmark crafts, there is no excuse to fold down a corner!
Check out our other bookmarks and let us know which is your favorite: Bookmarks for Kids, Chucky Tassel Bookmark, Fruit Slice Corner Bookmarks, Cute Cat Bookmarks.
