BENGALURU: While e-books offer convenience, nothing beats the smell of a book with its yellowing paper, rustle and love. Despite owning e-books, several of us sleep better with real books, stocked up around us, with a bookmark edging each one. So, here’s a way to make a bookmark magnet by yourself.
Materials Needed
Felt sheets in two colours or more, pair of scissors, marking pen or pencil, a ruler, hot glue gun with glue stick or super glue or multi-surface craft glue, embroidery skeins of a few colours, either contrasting or complimenting the felt sheets, a needle, thin strip of cardboard, magnetic strip about four inches long or more.
METHOD
■ Mark out about six inches on a felt sheet. You can choose red for the base. Mark a line using the cardboard cover of a stitching kit.
■ Cut the strip out using a pair of scissors. Cut another strip of identical dimensions.
■ You can at this point gauge the amount of felt you need to stretch out from the thin cardboard piece. You may choose other durable materials too to reinforce the felt pieces bookmark, such as old plastic file pieces, or thicker cardboard.
■ Use a ring to trace out circles of one inch diameter and cut them from another felt sheet. Place these circles in either half of the rectangular piece and stitched on to the red felt piece, using Button stitch. Pick up a yellow skein and fill up the centres of these circles.
■ This turns out to resemble a flower. Now add petals with the thread. You can repeat this design on the other circle.
■ Insert the cardboard strip between the rear side of this strip and the second strip. Use button stitch with yellow thread to stitch them together.
■ Take care not to let knots show when you stitch. It is possible to start stitching with not much knotting. Finish off and cut the thread. If there are hanging ends, you can glue them back into the felt sheet.
■ Bring out your magnet strip. It must not protrude over the bookmark. Get the hot glue gun ready by plugging it, or if you use a multi surface glue, bring it on.
■ Peel the magnet from its self adhesive tape. Apply glue with the hot glue gun or super glue.
■ Quickly press the magnet over this glue. Crease over it for it to stick better. Let it dry for a few minutes.
■ Your bookmark magnet is ready.
(http://www.imprintshandmade.com)