Sewing a Fabric Bookmark

Self-Checklist

Your machine is threaded correctly

Bobbin was placed the correct way

Pressure foot is down on material

You are using the correct needle for your material

Your hands are positioned away from moving parts

You are using a back stitch at the start and end of your stitch

You are not pushing or pulling the material through the machine

You are turning off your machine when not in use

In this tutorial you will practice:

Sewing in a straight line

Cutting and ironing fabric

Backstitching

Topstitching

Step 1: Find 2 pieces of scrap cotton that you like

make sure that these are at least 4x8in

Step 2: Press your fabric flat with an iron

ironing your fabric not only gives you a clean finish but also helps ensure accurate measurements

Step 3: On a piece of paper, decide how large you want your bookmark to be.

I wanted mine to be 2”x6” BUT because I needed to account for seam allowance, I made my pattern 2.5”x6.5”

Make sure you tack on an extra half inch to your pattern/design. This is your seam allowance. Ideally you have an allowance of .25” on each side to account for the space between your stitches and the edge of your fabric

Step 4: Once you are happy with your bookmark size, cut your rectangle out

Step 5: Position you pattern where you want it on your fabric

Step 6: Mark your pattern with tailors chalk or an erasable pen

erasable pen ink disappears when it comes in contact with heat. Ironing your fabric will remove any stray marks

Step 7: Cut out your rectangle

Step 8: Repeat steps 5-7 on your second fabric

Until you have both sides of your bookmark cut out

Step 9: Place the two sides of your fabric together with NICE SIDES FACING EACH OTHER

you want the good sides together because when you eventually flip your bookmark inside out, we want the nice sides to end up on the outside

Step 10: Pin your fabric in place

You can also use clips

Step 11: Now, it’s time to sew! ONLY SEW YOUR TWO LONG SIDES AND ONE SHORT SIDE. DO NOT SEW ALL FOUR SIDES SHUT.

Place your fabric under the presser foot and do a few stitches.

Now, find the reverse button and sew a few stitches backwards.

This is backstitching. It prevents your line of stitches from going undone when pulled on.

Step 12: After you have sewn your three edges, make sure that you backstitch to finish your stitches.

Step 13: At your top corners, cut off a small amount of your corner seam allowance. You should also cut off all the extra thread.

This will allow your fabric to lay flat.

Step 14: Now it’s time to flip your bookmark out. To do this, take your open seam and feed the finished short side through.

You may have to poke a pencil into those corners to get them pointy.

Step 15: Press flat

Step 16: Now, it’s time to fold in your unfinished edges. Take your top edges and fold them inwards so that no raw edges can be seen on the outside

Step 17: Carefully iron your seam closed so that your bookmark lays completely flat and has no raw edges showing

Step 18: Find a ribbon of your choice and insert it into your unsewn seam.

You may need to pin it, but I did not.

Step 19: Sew your final seam shut. BUT DON’T STOP THERE! Continue sewing a single stitch along the edge of your entire bookmark about 1/8th an inch from the edge.

This is a topstitch. It helps allow the bookmark to lay flat.

Step 20: Celebrate! You just made your own fabric bookmark!