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Reading a book is a wonderful feeling – but what happens when you have to stop? Do you throw in a piece of paper to mark your place: an envelope, a dollar bill, a tissue? Are you relying on the fold of a dust jacket? Do you dog-ear the page?*

Rest assured, there are better, more enjoyable, and far cuter ways to mark your place when you are inevitably forced to close your book. These are 10 DIY bookmarks you can whip up with some very basic craft supplies and a little creativity!

*We’re just kidding – we know no one here dog-ears pages!

The ‘Hot Cup of Tea’ Bookmark: Love to read with a cuppa tea? Save the bag tag from your favorite variety or make an entirely new one with this Quick Cup of Tea Bookmark DIY from Genuine Mudpie.

The ‘Cute as a Button’ Bookmark: Spare buttons tend to pile up, and what can you do with one button that doesn’t match the others? With this easy Button Bookmarks tutorial from I Heart Nap Time, you can transform those tiny treasures with a little glue, felt, and some paperclips!

The Luxurious Velvet and Jeweled Ribbon Bookmark: A perfect project for upcyclers and treasure hunters: turn old or damaged baubles into gorgeous heirloom DIY Ribbon Bookmarks! The folks at Intimate Weddings show you how to use a little ribbon and some pliers to create these beautiful pieces.

The ‘Monster at the Corner of This Book’ Bookmark: Ever want a reading companion to travel through a book with you? Make your own book-eating monster with these folded-paper Page Corner Bookmarks from Tally’s Treasury. You can make them for kids to enjoy, but be sure to keep some for yourself too!

The Tiny Crocheted Flower Bookmark: If you’re a crocheter with little scraps of yarn (and as a crocheter, I think that’s probably most of us) then these Crochet Flower Paper Clips  from Petals to Picots as an ideal way to use up scraps!

The Micro Pom Pom Bookmark: Knitters, crocheters and yarncrafters of all kinds tend to have yarn left overs – use them to make adorable Yarn Ball Bookmarks using this tutorial on DesignMom.

The ‘I Heard You Liked Reading, So I Put Some Reading in Your Reading’ Bookmark: Can’t get enough of the written word? Of course you can’t. These Paper Bead Bookmarks from The ReFab Diaries let you incorporate favorite passages and clippings into whatever you’re reading at the moment.

The Ruffled Ribbon and Elastic Bookmark: A perfect project for a journal or diary, Journal Wraps from the folks at Craft Snob make it easy to pick up where you left off. These bookmarks work particularly well for small, hard cover journals, and are a lovely way to use up pretty bits of ribbon.

The ‘Superheroes Love to Read Too’ Bookmark: Be ready for adventure with your favorite Avengers Bookmarks there in case of emergency! This project from Crafts by Amanda is great for kids and can be designed to look like any of your favorite heroes and heroines.

Do you use handmade bookmarks? What’s your favorite way to mark what page you’re on?

Not too long ago, baby and bridal showers were a somewhat simple event. Guests would snack on finger foods such as sandwiches, dips, and the occasional spoonful of mysterious ambrosia. Dessert was either a chocolate or vanilla cake with a congratulatory message written in icing across the top. The venue decor would consist of balloons, streamers, flowers, and the occasional umbrella or wishing well. And, inevitably, someone would make a hat out of ribbons and bows from unwrapped presents, place the hat on the Guest of Honor’s head, and snap a picture.

Weddings had a similar sameness to them: the same flowers, colors, attire, decorations, music, food, and traditions.  For a while—a very long while—showers and weddings felt dull.

And then Pinterest happened.  Thanks to the multitude of creative and talented Pinterest pinners, showers and weddings will never again be the trite or mediocre occasions that they once were. 

Pinterest is an invaluable resource for the expecting or engaged book lover because book-themed baby shower pins, bridal shower pins, and wedding pins are popping up all over users’ boards.  The following are Pinterest-inspired ideas on how to create your own book-themed shower or wedding.

Writing poetry isn't really a talent of mine—unless you count humorous/sarcastic haikus and "Roses Are Red" variants—but I do randomly stack books to create sentences and mini-mini short stories. Then I discovered that this a Thing: spine poetry! Naturally, I got sucked into the Internet and bounced from Pinterest to Tumblr to blog posts filled with books stacked and photographed to create a poem. 

So for no reason at all and with no prize promised, I challenged myself to see how many sentences I could create with the books in my office. My self-imposed rules were no title repetition and only using print books on my shelves. Here's what I came up with.

Deep in the shade of paradise, when you are engulfed in flames, this book will save your life.

National Craft Month continues with a truly intense craft: The Creepy Monkey from Creepy Cute Crochet: Zombies, Ninjas, Robots, and More! This is not a craft for beginners—it’s as tough and unforgiving as March. But if you’re a crafter, you’re not afraid of a challenge! And besides, this monkey is so darned cute I’ll leap at any opportunity to share it.

The world needs more of these sweet little monkeys. Make them!

When most people read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, they are astonished to learn that The Boy Who Lived sleeps in a cupboard under the stairs. For me, though, it always seemed kind of…cozy.

Don’t get me wrong—sleeping in a cupboard under the stairs is not ideal, but as a reading nook, it could work. Give me an area with soft lighting, pillows, a blanket, and a book, and I’d call this the perfect reading spot—perhaps not for The Boy Who Lived, but for The Person Who Reads. Reading nooks (or corners) provide readers with a designated space for opening a book and shutting out the rest of the world.  

So you still don’t have anything to give your sweetheart for Cupid’s birthday? No problem. You can make the perfect gift in no time. Just start flexing your fingers…

And get crafting!

Everyone loves receiving flowers, but the gesture can get lost in the resulting scurry for a vase (do you even own a vase?), filling it with water (tap or filter?), and then placing it in the perfect spot (just put it down already!). Or you could just make a bouquet out of fluffy, boingy pom-poms, like the one from Pom-Poms! 25 Awesomely Fluffy Projects.

Spray the poms with a little perfume so they smell as fragrant as your lover’s favorite bloom!