Homemade Bookmark Craft
Let the kids make their mark!
Submitted by
Kayla Chong
Kayla Chong
Have your child craft a simple, creative photo collage bookmark using a few fabulous pics and some contact paper. They're great gifts for any occasion ... for example, to say "Happy Birthday, Grandma," "You're the Best Teacher" or "Sorry I put gum on your cat."
- Photos:Sorry, digital pics won't work for this craft. You'll have to actually print some out! Hit a photo-printing kiosk at your local drugstore or photo shop, or plan ahead and order prints online from a service like Shutterfly or Kodak. Or print some on your printer at home.
- Cardboard:The back of a cereal box will work.
- Scissors or paper cutter
- Clear contact paper
- Hole puncher
- Ribbon
- Glue
Have your kid pick a few of his favorite photos out of the 20,000 you've taken since he was born. If he's making a bookmark for someone special, encourage him to use a picture featuring him and that person together. Grandma may love anything plastered with photos of your kid, but everyone else will probably think it's a little weird to receive a bookmark exclusively featuring your kid for their birthday.
Have your child cut out a piece of cardboard in the shape of a long, wide rectangular bookmark.
Help him cover the cardboard with a piece of construction paper to make a pretty base in case any of the cardboard peeks through the collage. Cut the paper to size and have your child glue it onto the cardboard.
Next, help your kid cut out the photos he wants to use. Make sure to cut the images so that they work nicely together and fit onto the cardboard.
Help him glue the photos onto the cardboard.
Laminate the finished product by covering the bookmark with clear contact paper.
Using the hole puncher, make a hole in the top of the bookmark. Make sure your child designs the collage so that nobody's face winds up with a hole poked through it. Someone might take it personally!
String a ribbon through the hole so that the ends meet, and tie a knot snug against the top of the cardboard, leaving the two ends of the ribbon dangling, and you've got a fancy, personalized gift to give.
- Don't have the time or patience to make a whole photo collage? Make a simple version of the photo bookmark out of two photos. Have your child glue them together back to back and laminate the pics with the contact paper. Punch a hole in the top, loop a ribbon through the hole, and you've got an easier version of this personalized bookmark!
- Thanks to Traci Page Johnson and Nick Jr. Magazine.
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