Handmade Bookmark with Portrait (Gifts by Kids)

Leggi questo post in: Italiano

One of the first craft books that I bought and that I’ve loved very much is Handmade Home by Amanda Blake Soule*. This book was the inspiration for my repurposed towel and bedsheet bathroom rugs. But it also inspired me to make a handmade bookmark with portrait drawn by my daughter for every family member one Christmas.

Make a handmade bookmark with a portrait as a DIY gift! Your child draws the picture and you embroider over it, or the child just paints directly on the fabric. The DIY fabric bookmark is a fun homemade gift that will be a favorite among family and friends! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

I love having my children make a handmade gift for family and close friends every year at Christmas. People love getting something heartfelt, and I like the kids to learn the spirit of giving. So, Christmas 2010 was the year of the embroidered bookmarks!

Click to save this Cucicucicoo.com project on Pinterest!

No, my daughter did not know how to embroider when she was 4 years old. But she was quite accomplished at drawing very unique pictures of her favorite people. So she drew onto fabric, and I embroidered over it, then sewed it together.

Let me show you how to make your own handmade bookmark with an embroidered portrait!

Materials:

Print out these instructions!
Scroll down to the end of this post and click “Print”.

The embroidered version:

Prepare fabric for drawing on by taping it to a table with masking tape. #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark
  1. Cut out a piece of white fabric considerably bigger than the final bookmark size and tape it to a table, near the edge, with masking tape. Notice how I marked the edges of the bookmark. This helps the child understand the borders of the drawing. I marked off 9 cm wide by 20 cm high.
Handmade embroidered bookmark: the child draws on the fabric with a water soluble pen. #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

2. Have the child draw with the water soluble marker within the rectangle of fabric bordered by masking tape. Here you can see drawings for two bookmarks on one large scrap of the sheet.

The nice thing about the water soluble pen is that, if your child makes a mistake, you can dab some water on it to erase it. (Hence those wet spots in the picture above.)

Handmade embroidered bookmark: embroider over the child's drawing. #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

3. Embroider over the drawing. I suggest you also embroider the name or initials of the child with the year on the back piece. I only used backstitch and French knots, but you could use other fancier stitches, too.

Handmade embroidered bookmark: put the fabric pieces together, right sides facing, and pin. #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

4. Wash away the marker, let the fabric dry and iron it. (I didn’t iron these, but do as I say, not as I do!) Mark where you want to sew (which will be the final dimensions) on the back of the embroidered picture.

5. Put the piece with the portrait on top of the back piece, right sides facing, and pin. On the right you can see the pinned pieces as seen from the wrong side of the backing.

(Just a little note: I am updating this tutorial 9 years after having originally created it. You will have MUCH better and precise results if you cut the two fabric pieces to the final size, + 2 cm both horizontally and verically, after ironing the fabric in step 4. This way you can have more control over centering the embroidery and making it fit together correctly.)

Handmade embroidered bookmark: sew the front and back together, right sides facing, turn, and topstitch. #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

6. Sew along the rectangle you drew (or, if you did as I suggested above, around the cut out rectangle with a 1 cm seam allowance), leaving an open space at the top (marked by the red arrows above). Trim off the extra fabric and clip the the corners (marked by the blue arrows above).

7. Turn the fabric right side out and press out the corners and sides with a pencil or other blunt point. Fold the edges of the open space inwards and iron well.

8. Fold a wide piece of ribbon in half and insert the ends into the open space. Pin the space shut.

Make a handmade bookmark with a portrait as a DIY gift! Your child draws the picture and you embroider over it, or the child just paints directly on the fabric. The DIY fabric bookmark is a fun homemade gift that will be a favorite among family and friends! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

9. Topstitch around the edges of the rectangle, and you’re done!

Aren’t these adorable?! The one of the left is Sofia’s “Mamma” and on the right is “Daddy”. 9 years later, we still use these!

Handmade embroidered bookmark: embroider the child’s initials or name, along with the date, to remember when she made it, years from now! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

Remember I suggested to embroider the child’s initials and date into the back side of the bookmark? Years from now, everyone who received one of Sofia’s portrait bookmarks will remember who made it and when!

Make a handmade bookmark with a portrait as a DIY gift! Your child draws the picture and you embroider over it, or the child just paints directly on the fabric. The DIY fabric bookmark is a fun homemade gift that will be a favorite among family and friends! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

Now that you have your own personalized handmade bookmark with portrait, it’s time to get reading!

Click to save this Cucicucicoo.com project on Pinterest!

The painted version:

Handmade bookmark with children’s pictures: paint on fabric and sew into an easy bookmark! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

So, you might be thinking what I thought at the time: after the original drawing gets washed away, all that can be seen is the adult’s embroidered intervention. If this bothers, or you have limited time, or you don’t know how to embroider, the child can simply make a permanent drawing directly on the fabric.

I tested with permanent marker, but it soaked too much into the linen fibers.

Handmade bookmark with children’s pictures: paint on fabric and sew into an easy bookmark! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

But acrylic paint* worked perfectly! Tape the fabric to the table, marking off the work space was with the embroidered version, but give the child acrylic paints to be creative with.

Make a handmade bookmark with a portrait or painting as a DIY gift! Your child paints the picture and you sew it together. A perfect personalized gift for friends and family! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

This is a whole different effect, but wonderful all the same!

Make a handmade bookmark with a portrait or painting as a DIY gift! Your child paints the picture and you sew it together. A perfect personalized gift for friends and family! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

This time I painted the initials and year on instead of embroidering.

I rather like both styles. Which do you prefer?

Let your children make their own holiday gifts for others with these easy DIY felt Christmas tree ornaments for kids! Use the free pattern to cut out three shapes from repurposed felted sweaters and decorate! So much fun and eco-friendly! #diychristmasornaments #feltedsweaters

If you like your children to make handmade gifts for family and friends, make sure you check out these super simple DIY felt Christmas tree ornaments! All you have to do is cut out the felt bauble shapes and the children can decorate them as they please!

Three great things about these ornaments:

  1. They are so simple, any age can make them.
  2. They are made with repurposed materials!
  3. They are flat and light, so you can easily slip them into cards that you send to loved ones around the world! (and if you want to make your own cards, download my simple and free printable holiday cards!)
Do you want all the new sewing techniques and cool modern sewing projects, right in your inbox? Then sign up for the Cucicucicoo Newsletter here for access to dozens of free printables! 
Click to save this Cucicucicoo.com project on Pinterest!

If you loved this project and want to try it yourself, click here to save this post on Pinterest!

Make a handmade bookmark with a portrait as a DIY gift! Your child draws the picture and you embroider over it, or the child just paints directly on the fabric. The DIY fabric bookmark is a fun homemade gift that will be a favorite among family and friends! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

*All starred links are affiliate links which help fund this blog. All opinions are my own. Please read my affiliate link disclosure for more information.

Make a handmade bookmark with a portrait as a DIY gift! Your child draws the picture and you embroider over it, or the child just paints directly on the fabric. The DIY fabric bookmark is a fun homemade gift that will be a favorite among family and friends! #giftsbykids #diyfabricbookmark

Handmade Embroidered Bookmark with a Kid- Drawn Portrait

Active Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: Easy

Make a handmade bookmark with a portrait as a DIY gift! Your child draws the picture and you embroider over it, or the child just paints directly on the fabric. The DIY fabric bookmark is a fun homemade gift that will be a favorite among family and friends!

Materials

  • Linen or cotton fabric (or repurposed scraps of linen)
  • 2.5 cm (1") wide ribbon
  • Masking tape
  • Water soluble fabric marker
  • Embroidery floss of various colors
  • Embroidery needle
  • Embroidery hoop
  • Regular sewing materials (thread, needle)
  • Fabric shears

Instructions

  1. Cut out a piece of white fabric considerably bigger than the final bookmark (about 9 cm wide by 20 cm high) and tape it to a table, near the edge, with masking tape.
  2. Have the child draw with the water soluble marker within the rectangle of fabric bordered by masking tape.
  3. Embroider over the drawing.
  4. Wash away the marker, let the fabric dry and iron it.
  5. Cut the two fabric pieces to the final size + 2 cm both horizontally and verically.
  6. Sew around the rectangle with a 1 cm seam allowance, leaving an open space at the top. Trim off the extra fabric and clip the the corners.
  7. Turn the fabric right side out and press out the corners and sides with a pencil or other blunt point. Fold the edges of the open space inwards and iron well.
  8. Fold a wide piece of ribbon in half and insert the ends into the open space. Pin the space shut.
  9. Topstitch around the edges of the rectangle.

And you're done! Now grab a good book and use your cool new customized handmade embroidered bookmark!

If you don't know how to embroider, no problem! Just have your child paint on the fabric with acrylic paint before sewing.

Notes

Be eco-friendly and try to repurpose old sheets or other linens. Otherwise use fabric scraps left over from other sewing projects.

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All materials links are affiliate links which help fund this blog. All opinions are my own. Please read my affiliate link disclosure for more information: https://www.cucicucicoo.com/affiliate-links/

19 thoughts on “Handmade Bookmark with Portrait (Gifts by Kids)”

  1. Io invece preferisco quelli dipinti: in quelli si vede direttamente il contributo di tua figlia, senza passare poi per le mani di un adulto! Mi sembrano più "autentici".

    PS: ho finito la maglia che avevo visto sul tuo blog! Ho fatto diverse modifiche perchè quando ho provato ad indossarla per prova (la destinataria ha le mie misure, a parte il pancione) ho fatto fatica ad avvolgermi tutta… Dopo Natale posterò le foto! Comunque sono proprio contenta di aver trovato questa idea! Grazie!!! 😀

    Reply
  2. @roby: grazie per il tuo parere sui segnalibri! e mi fa molto piacere che ha fatto la maglia! sarò molto curiosa di vederla! quando posti le foto, mi faresti il favore di farmelo sapere? dovrei partorire dopo natale, quindi non credo di poter seguire molto i blog degli altri in quel periodo, e non le vorrei perdere! 🙂

    Reply
  3. Bellissima idea.
    Ti ho segnalata.

    Io preferisco quelli ricamati, mi piace molto il ricamo, che di solito è preciso e inserito in regole estetiche precise, e che invece nei tuoi segnalibri è così…creativo!!!
    Stefania

    Reply
  4. Idee grandiosa e ti sono venuti tutti bene, anche se quelli ricamati mi piacciono un sacco! Ti ho pinnata così mi ricordo x quando Alessio è un po' più grandicello!
    Grazie e buona giornata

    Reply
  5. grazie clara! ora mi piacciono ancora di più questi segnalibri perché, passato 1 1/2 anni, lei non diesgna nè scrive così. è un bel modo per ricordare com'era lei! forse ne devo fare qualcuno altro questo anno! 🙂

    Reply
  6. è vero che si divertono a vedere le loro opere, ma si divertono anche a vedere le loro opere trasformate. mia figlia si è divertita tanto a vedere come si erano trasformati i suoi disegni! grazie per il commento!

    Reply

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