{{tncms-inline alignment=”left” content=”<p class="p1">• Two (2) Coloring Corner Designs That You Like</p> <p class="p1">• One (1) Piece Of Card Stock Paper</p> <p class="p1">• Colored Pencils Or Crayons</p> <p class="p1">• Glue Stick</p> <p class="p1">• Scissors</p> <p class="p1">• Straight Edge Or Ruler</p> <p class="p1">• Clear Packing Tape</p> <p class="p1">• Hole Punch (optional)</p> <p class="p1">• Ribbon (optional)</p>” id=”de28ad75-fd4a-4bb6-add7-3ac5c6307428″ style-type=”fact” title=”YOU WILL NEED:” type=”relcontent”}}

{{tncms-inline alignment=”left” content=”<p><span class="s2">If you are a crafter and would like your craft/hobby featured in Creative Crafter, <a href="https://www.americanpress.com/site/forms/creative_crafter_article_application/" target="_blank">CLICK HERE</a> </span>to fill out the application form, or email Kim at kking@americanpress.com or call 337-494-4002 </p>” id=”d66fccad-af6f-44c6-bbc6-75dc3ffd1beb” style-type=”info” title=”CALLING ALL CRAFTERS” type=”relcontent”}}

Well, everyone is now back to school! For some parents, there is a sigh of relief and other parents are sad to see their little or big kids leaving their sides. One of the programs I loved when I was in school was Book It. It was a great reading program which got me more interested in reading books on a daily basis and who could say no to the reward of pizza? This week’s craft is an homage to back to school reading by creating a bookmark from the Coloring Corner that is in every Wednesday’s paper. 

Coloring has always been an interest of mine. I would sit for hours coloring in Garfield coloring books. I love that cat; his hatred of Mondays and love of lasagna. So when adult coloring came into style, I loved all the new designs to color. The American Press started running the Coloring Corner back in 2016, I absolutely loved it and the section was a great stress reliever. Once you finished coloring a design, you could cut it out and frame it, use it to wrap a small gift or as you will find out shortly, make a bookmark.

I found two designs that I really liked from past editions and cut them out. I chose more geometric and abstract designs for this project, but feel free to use whichever design catches your or your child’s eye. I also thought that the swirly design would be best suited to stay black and white so I concentrated on coloring the art deco design that looks like a stained glass window.

Mid-way through my coloring, I needed a break and decided to start assembling the bookmark. I trimmed up my designs to neaten the edges and then applied glue along the edges and did a crisscross in the center. I placed it on one side of the card stock. I did the same thing with the other design and lined it up on the card stock to match the placement of the other design. After both designs were glued down, I returned to coloring. 

Once I was finished coloring my design, I cut off the excess card stock so that I had a neat square. I then took a straight edge and eyeballed about an inch in from the side, marked all the way down the design and cut through my design. I used the first cut piece as a guide for the others. I was able to get four – 1” bookmarks. I had one left over that was about 1.5”-2” wide and decided to put that aside to use for something else. 

Now if you have access to a laminating machine, this is where you would laminate your bookmark. I do not have a laminating machine and therefore am laminating my bookmarks the “old-school” way by using clear packing tape. I cut a piece of packing tape a little larger than the bookmark and placed the bookmark on the tape. I then cut another piece of tape about the same size and sandwiched my bookmark in between the two pieces of tape. Next, I cut around my bookmark to trim up the edges. The bookmark is now done!

Remember the 1.5-2” piece that I had left over? Well, my husband really wanted a bookmark for the book he was reading so I cut out the design following the bold lines. I got rid of the one rectangle that I was not happy with and made a completely original bookmark. I followed the same steps to laminate his bookmark. 

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Of course, you can punch a hole in the top and place a ribbon through the hole or decorate the outside with paint. Another fun way to decorate the outside is with some colorful nail polish. 

These make great back to school gifts for your child’s teacher or a great way for your child to express their individuality while reading their favorite book. 

As always, happy crafting!Creative Crafter.png

Creative Crafting with Kim prints on Sundays. If you would like to advertise your crafting business or sell leftover crafting supplies call the American Press Classified department at 337-494-4000 or email kking@americanpress.com. Deadline to place an ad is Friday at 4pm. Feedback about this article can be sent to kking@americanpress.com.

• Two (2) Coloring Corner Designs That You Like

• One (1) Piece Of Card Stock Paper

• Colored Pencils Or Crayons

• Glue Stick

• Scissors

• Straight Edge Or Ruler

• Clear Packing Tape

• Hole Punch (optional)

• Ribbon (optional)

If you are a crafter and would like your craft/hobby featured in Creative Crafter, CLICK HERE to fill out the application form, or email Kim at kking@americanpress.com or call 337-494-4002 

IMG_2866.jpgKimKingClassified Advertising Managerkwright@americanpress.com
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https://www.americanpress.com/content/tncms/avatars/1/a7/d53/1a7d53ac-3725-11e7-81a5-e3dd81453762.2ba8d0d885e271a62e70601ce4a73e82.pngIMG_2876.jpgKimKingClassified Advertising Managerkwright@americanpress.com
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