I read an article about bookmarks and it started me thinking about my collection. I have to admit that I do turn down the pages of paperbacks, only if they are my own I hasten to add. Sometimes I turn down the bottom corner of a page. This is code for: there is something on this page that I want to look at again. However, mainly I do use a bookmark.
At one time bookmarks were useful small gifts and came in a wide variety of designs and materials. I have received bookmarks made of balsa wood, plastic, silk and some sort of thin metal. There have been several embroidered bookmarks, much cross stitch and tapestry and also personalised sewn names. There was a knitted bookmark once but I don’t seem to have that anymore
These days the bookmark collection on my bedside table is less interesting but more homogenous. They are made of thin card, about 5 inches by 1 inch and usually emanating from a bookshop purchase. The ones from Slightly Foxed often feature delightful woodcuts and Persephone books come with bookmarks that use designs that reflect the age of the story.
Sometimes I prefer to use a postcard or even occasionally a photo. I then have a thought or a memory about a holiday or a person before I even begin to read. Or it might even be a rail ticket or a shopping list …