How to Make Keepsake Bookmarks With Pressed Flowers and Photos

A keepsake bookmark turns something small and special into something you’ll use every day. That might be a flower from the garden, a photo of someone you love, or a ticket stub from a great game. With clear peel-and-stick bookmark blanks, there’s no glue, no resin, and no special equipment. You arrange your pieces inside, seal the layers together, and you’re done.

What do you need?

Clear peel-and-stick bookmark blanks
Pressed flowers and leaves, small photo prints, or thin paper pieces like scrapbook paper, stickers, and tiny notes
Tweezers
A toothpick
A small piece of tape
A smoothing tool (a popsicle stick works too)
A tassel, if you’d like one

Our Keepsake Bookmark Party Pack has 24 bookmark blanks in 6 shapes, 4 tweezers, 4 smoothing tools, and 24 tassels, so four people can make bookmarks at the same table.

What can you put in a keepsake bookmark?

Anything thin and flat. There’s no single right way to make one, so mix and match:

Pressed flowers and leaves, for a bookmark that’s all about the colors and shapes of the garden.
Photos, for a personalized gift for a friend, a teacher, or someone special.
Themed pieces, like paper accents for a sports fan.
A mix, such as a small photo with a pressed flower beside it.

Keep everything thin. A thick flower center or a stack of paper can hold the layers apart and leave an air bubble.

How do you make one?

Plan your layout first. Arrange your pieces beside the blank before you open it, so there’s less handling of fragile petals once the sticky side is exposed.
Add a tape hinge. Put a small piece of tape across the top of the blank, over both layers. It keeps them lined up when you open it.
Open the layers. Use a toothpick to lift a corner and gently separate the layers. Try not to touch the sticky side, because fingerprints show through the clear layer.
Place your pieces face down. Lay each piece face down on the sticky side, so it faces out when you turn the bookmark over. Use tweezers for pressed flowers.
Leave some space. Keep a clear border around the edges so the layers can seal to each other.
Close and smooth. Lower the top layer back down, then smooth from the center out toward the edges to push out any air.
Finish it. Remove the tape and add a tassel if you’d like.

Where do the pressed flowers come from?

Pressed flowers need to be completely dry and flat before they go into a bookmark. A Microfleur microwave flower press presses them in minutes and keeps their color, so you can pick, press, and make a bookmark on the same day. New to pressing? The free Microfleur Mastery course shows you how, step by step.