Easy to make lavender bookmark

Lavender is one of my favorite plants for a few reasons:

~it’s scent is beautiful and long lasting;

~it forms nice round mounds and easy to maintain;

~it is very easy to grow and hardy over the winters;

~deer don’t like it and that’s a good thing where I live because we have a lot of deer;

~marmot, gophers and chipmunks don’t like (similar reason to the deer);

~even when picked it lasts a long time and it’s fragrance does too; and

~it is perfect for so many DIY projects!

As I mentioned I grow lavender because we live on the fringe of a large provincial park jam packed with wildlife that cruise through our acreage on a daily basis and eat everything in sight…except the lavender!

I enjoy making many things from it and today, I would like to share a unique idea I came up with – a lavender bookmark! I thought how wonderful it would be to open my book and have the scent of lavender wafting up. So let’s get started!

Materials

For this project you will need:

• at least 5 pieces of lavender
• white construction paper (as long and as wide as you wish to make your bookmark)
• tulle (10″ long 2″ wide)
• 24″ of 5/8″ wide purple ribbon
• scissors or paper cutter
• ruler
• glue gun & glue sticks
• iron and ironing board

Step 1 – Choose 5 or more stalks of sturdy lavender

While you will only need three stalks, choose a few extra as inevitably some will break. It is important to choose stalks that are not too dry, that are holding together well, have quite straight stems and have lots of small flowers. The fresher the lavender the better.

Step 2 – Flatten the lavender

Place the lavender on a piece of paper towel.

Lay another piece of paper towel on the lavender to protect it.

Take a heavy rolling pin and gently roll over the lavender heads. With each pass, press a little harder until you can feel the lavender flattening out.

Below is a picture of how flat the lavender should become.

Step 3 – Prepare the backing for the bookmark

I chose a scrapbooking piece of cardstock that was white with a bit of a shimmer. Choose whatever you think would look beautiful behind the lavender but make sure it is not too busy.

On the back of the cardstock measure off a width of 1 3/4″ and 9″ long. I say to make the markings on the back so that they do not show on the front. Cut the strip out. Also if you have thicker or thinner pieces of lavender adjust the bookmark as you may need more space or you may need less.

Step 4 – Choose the 3 best pieces of lavender.

Of the three pieces, pick the longest and thickest one and place it on the bookmark. Take the other two pieces and lay them beside. Once you have a nice staggered arrangement, apply a thin line of hot glue to the back and press down.

Step 5 – Prepare the covering

Cut a piece of white tulle that is 1/2″ too big on all sides. Bend the 1/2″ extra over and iron so that it lays flat.

Wrap the tulle around the bookmark and glue down on the back of the bookmark.

Step 6 – Prepare the trim and apply

I chose a sparkly lavender ribbon that is 5/8″ wide. Cut a piece of the ribbon that is 24″ long. This allows some extra that can be trimmed off later.

Fold the ribbon in half.

Iron the ribbon in half so that it will lay flat.

Starting with the longest sides, cut a piece of ribbon that is slightly longer that the bookmark. Wrap the ribbon on the front and back and glue down.

Repeat on both sides. Trim the excess very close to the edge of the bookmark.

Then cut two pieces that are slightly longer than the width and repeat the instructions above to apply the ribbon.

Trim the excess and voila you are complete!

And look how pretty it looks even just as a decorative element!

As always, I hope you enjoyed this project. I am working away on a few blogs and one I hope you will really enjoy is about all of the renovations Bentley and I have done. It has been so fun looking back on all the homes. Wow, we had a lot of energy back then!

Also, if you are a flower lover like I am and longing for spring, I suggest you take a look at a blog I did about a flower farm I visited last year. The beautiful sites still stand out in my memories as a very magical day. You will love it, so just click here and you will be magically whisked away to the post.

As always, I would love to hear from you so please leave a comment.

Wishing you a day that is beautiful with wafts of lavender and the warmth of sunshine on your shoulders.