Despite the increasing availability of titles through e-readers, the old standby of an actual paper and cardboard book in your hand isn't going to disappear any time soon. Use Microsoft Word to customize your own printable bookmarks, taking advantage of templates or starting from scratch.
Step 1
Launch Word 2013 and click the "Blank document" button on the splash screen. Click the "Insert" tab, then click the "Shapes" button. Click the Rectangle shape and, when the cursor changes to a plus sign, draw the bookmark on the page. You can choose a different shape, such as Rounded Rectangle, but shapes with a more complex design will be more difficult to cut out.
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Step 2
Click the shape to open the Drawing Tools tab and its Format ribbon. You won't see these options if the bookmark isn't clicked. Click the "Shape Fill" and "Shape Outline" menus on the ribbon to change the bookmark's colors. For "Shape Fill," you can click "Picture" and choose one of your own images for the bookmark, as well as a gradient or texture instead of a solid.
Step 3
Click the "Draw Text Box" button, also on the ribbon, and draw a text box on the bookmark. Type in the box with an encouraging message, song lyrics, book quote, or something else for the bookmark. You can alter the text box's colors in the same way, as well as change the font on the Home tab.
Step 4
Click the "Insert" tab again and choose "Pictures" to insert an image of your own onto the bookmark, or "Online Pictures" (which used to be termed Clip Art in older versions of Word). Add something decorative to the bookmark.
Step 5
Click into the height and width boxes on the right side of the ribbon. You can be more precise here with the bookmark's size if you're going for specific dimensions.
Step 6
Create multiple bookmarks by clicking the bookmark's border and pressing the "Ctrl-C" keys to copy it. Click elsewhere on the page and press the "Ctrl-V" to copy the bookmark. Drag the new bookmark slightly off the first one. Repeat to fill the Word document page, which will maximize your space and give you multiple bookmarks, depending on the size of the original.
Step 7
Save the bookmark file prior to printing through the File tab's "Save As" option. With Word 2013 and 365, you have the option to save to the Cloud as well as to your desktop or network.
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