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Do you struggle with gifts your kids can make? I find thinking of gifts my kids can make extremely hard. I want the gift to be meaningful but also useful. These homemade bookmarks are exactly that!

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While I love everything my kids make, I also know that not everything is gift worthy. I want it to be something the recipient can actually use.
In the past we’ve done painted flower pots, mistletoe wall hanging, and special pictures. I try to think of something new every year.

This year, I was having an extra hard time thinking of something. I had no idea what to have the kids make. Then it hit me.

Everyone in my family has been reading a lot of books lately. Personalized bookmarks would be so cute!

I had planned on using the technique I used to the personalization of the bookmarks on a different project. But as soon as I had this though, I knew this would work perfectly on the bookmarks.

While I made these handmade bookmarks for Christmas, they can really be made for any occasion. They’d make perfect Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day, and evening birthday gifts!

Handmade Bookmarks

First, I headed into Photoshop to make the front of the DIY bookmarks. You can find the ones that I made in the VIP library. Or you can have your kids paint both sides.

I printed out the bookmarks on cardstock and then cut them out. Then I took blank pieces of cardstock and outlined the bookmarks. I placed stickers in the middle of each outline.

Painting the Bookmarks

I made two bookmarks for each person, one that said ‘best title’ and the other just painted. For the ‘best title’ place the stickers down first and then have your kids paint over it.

I kept the cardstock as a whole sheet instead of cutting it out because I figured it would be easier for my kids to paint. Just make sure they fully paint over each of the letters.

My plan was to give each kid different colors of paint, but at 1 and 3 they each wanted all of the colors. I would have one kid paint a sheet and then switch it between them, so each kid painted a little bit of every bookmark. 
Then I took the pages away to let them dry.

Once dry, I peeled off the stickers and cut the cardstock for the bookmarks.

Finishing the Bookmarks

I used double sided tape to tape the painted back onto the bookmark front I had made. I then took these to Lakeshore Learning to have them laminated. You can also have them laminated at Office Depot or other office supply stores, or buy a laminator for home.

I laminated them so that people wouldn’t be afraid to use them. But you definitely don’t have to laminate them.

The bookmarks were a big hit! Everyone loved them! They turned out so much cuter than I even thought they would.

I even made one for myself, and now every time I open my book it makes me smile.