I began teaching a class on medieval bookmarks at Pennsic 45. I was inspired by, yes – you guessed it, a post by Erik Kwakkel! I did some digging and recalled things that I had seen in various rare book libraries. The outcome is a class and this handout. I can’t find the original, just this pdf, so I will need to fix some obvious omissions! My name, for example! Until then enjoy.
And try to make some – I added that to the class the second time around and we had a great deal of fun! The simplest to make, featured above, goes like this: head to your favorite craft store. Buy ribbons that you like and miniature wood thread spools. Cut the ribbon double the length you need to have the ribbon come out the bottom of the book, plus enough to go around the spool. Fold it in half. Slip the ends through the loop OVER the spool. Tighten. Optionally knot or braid the ribbon to help keep it in place if the ribbon is slippery – whichever you choose, keep it as flat as possible to not damage the book. Happy crafting!
