How to Sew a Pen Bookmark Holder with Elastic in 10 Min!

Learn how to take a leftover quilt block and make it into something new – a bookmark!! This bookmark also features a pocket for your pens and pencils… plus an elastic so you can slide it onto your notebook.

If you have a pile or two of leftover quilt blocks, this project is one that uses a few blocks up. Make more than one and give them as gifts. They are great and simple to sew.

Because you are using a quilt block – it looks very pieced and scrappy (without sewing tiny pieces). Plus, each bookmark is a design that can’t really be duplicated and is one of a kind.

A pink spiral notebook with "LOVE" in gold, featuring a sewn fabric pen bookmark holder with elastic, containing a blue and a white pen. The notebook rests on a light-colored surface.

Materials Needed:

1 quilt block that is around 10″ x 10″ (need to sew a quilt block? check these out)
elastic – I used this type 10.5- inches ( can be more or less, depending on the size of your book. Mine was 8.5” long)
stabilizer (not required, but it does help the bookmark keep it’s shape)

A pink notebook with "LOVE" and heart patterns features a sewn elastic pen bookmark holder attached to the cover, holding a purple pen and white marker. Colorful fabric scraps are on the right on a wooden surface.

Sew a Pen Bookmark Holder with Elastic

A person holds several quilt blocks made from colorful fabric triangles and patterns in shades of purple, teal, white, and printed designs—perfect for crafting a sew pen holder or a unique pen bookmark holder—arranged on a cutting mat.

1- Dig through your stash and find a few quilt blocks that would work for this fun bookmark project

Two hands hold a partially assembled quilt block made of colorful patterned fabric squares and white strips, ready to sew. An elastic pen bookmark holder lies nearby on the cutting mat with measurement grid lines.

2- Cut your pieces out.

Front piece and back piece of the bookmark- 2.5” x 7”
Pocket pieces- 2.5” x 4.5” (cut 2).
Interfacing pieces- 2.5’ x 7” (cut 2)

A person holds a stack of small, colorful fabric strips, preparing to sew them into elastic Pen Bookmark Holders on a gray gridded cutting mat, with more fabric strips and materials lying nearby.

3- Lay the stabilizer piece under the pocket piece

Two hands holding and pointing at a rectangular piece of white fabric with small dots, placed on a cutting mat next to other fabric pieces, strips of interfacing, and elastic for a Sew pen bookmark holder tutorial.

4- Place the lining piece for the pocket on top. Stitch across the TOP of layered pieces

A person holds two quilt fabric strips, one white with gray dots and one multicolored with patterns, aligning the edges on a cutting mat background—perfect for your next sew project like an elastic pen bookmark holder.

5- Flip the pieces so they are right sides facing out and press the top edge well

A hand holds a piece of quilted fabric with pink, white, and blue patterned strips, showing a close-up of the neat stitching and an elastic edge—perfect to sew into a Pen Bookmark Holder. The person is wearing a gold ring.

6- Top stitch the seam so it lays nice and flat

A person holds a colorful patchwork piece over a gray cutting mat with gridlines, surrounded by fabric pieces and cut squares—perfect materials to sew a Pen Bookmark Holder or craft your own DIY Pen Bookmark.

7- Lay the stabilizer piece under the bookmark piece

A person holds pieces of colorful patterned fabric, preparing to sew them together into a sew pen holder, on a gray cutting mat marked with a grid.

8- Place the pocket on top (the lining is touching the right sides of the bookmark piece)

Hands are aligning and pressing a strip of colorful patterned fabric on a patchwork piece atop a gray cutting mat with grid lines in this Quick Sewing Tutorial, perfect for creating an Elastic Pen Holder.

9- Place your elastic on top, pinning the top and bottom to secure. It will be longer than the bookmark, so make sure it’s not overhanging the bookmark sides

A person arranges strips of patterned fabric and elastic on a gray cutting mat, preparing to sew or quilt. Scissors and extra fabric pieces lie nearby, ready for the next creative step.

10- Place the last bookmark backing piece, right sides facing down. Pin to secure. Sew around all four sides, leaving a 3″ opening on one side for turning

A person uses gold scissors to trim the corner of fabric pieces sewn together with elastic, on a cutting mat with a grid pattern—an essential step in learning how to sew projects like a sew pen bookmark holder.

11- Snip your corners

A person turns a small fabric pouch right side out on a gray grid cutting mat, preparing to sew a Pen Bookmark Holder with elastic, surrounded by fabric scraps and gold-handled scissors.

12- Turn right sides out

A pair of hands holding and stitching two pieces of patterned fabric together over a gray cutting mat, creating a sew pen holder. Fabric scraps and scissors are visible in the background.

13- Push those corners out with a purple thang or end of a pencil

14- At the opening, fold those seams inside.

Two hands hold a fabric strip, sewn with different patterns like pink polka dots and blue circles, perfect for creating an elastic Pen Bookmark Holder. Scissors and fabric scraps rest on a gridded cutting mat in the background.

15- Press well

A person holds a sewn fabric pen bookmark holder with colorful patterns over a gridded cutting mat. Scissors, fabric scraps, and crafting materials are visible in the background.

16- Stitch all the way around the bookmark to secure the sides and close that opening

A person holds a pink spiral notebook with cut-out hearts and the word "LOVE." A colorful elastic bookmark is wrapped around the cover, and scissors rest nearby on a crafting mat.

17- Slide the elastic onto the notebook with the pocket facing out

A person places a pencil into a colorful fabric pen bookmark holder attached to a pink notebook with small heart cutouts. Scissors and crafting materials are nearby on a gray grid work surface.

18- Place your pens or pencils in the pocket

How to Sew a Bookmark with a Pocket

A pink notebook with "LOVE" and heart patterns, a sewn fabric pen bookmark holder with elastic, two pens, and a pile of colorful paper scraps on a light blue wooden surface.

A pink spiral notebook with “LOVE” and heart shapes on the cover sits on a gray surface. Two pens are tucked in a DIY bookmark pen holder on the notebook, with scraps of colorful paper and fabric nearby.

More Projects Using Orphan Quilt Blocks:

Simple Bookmarks with Ribbon Loop

Three handmade DIY fabric bookmarks with pink, blue, and strawberry patterns lie on a distressed blue surface. Strips of fabric scraps are in the corner. Each bookmark has a small loop of ribbon at the top.

No pocket in these bookmarks, but it’s still a great project to use more quilt blocks.

Mesh Project Bag

A mesh zipper pouch with a polka-dot top contains sewing supplies like thread, a measuring tape, a pincushion, and scissors. Two patchwork fabric squares from a Quilt Block Tutorial and red-handled scissors are placed beside the pouch.

Use an orphan quilt block for the back of the zipper project bag – this has a mesh front so you can see what’s inside.

Corner Bookmark using Half Square Triangles

A person holds a red and white polka dot fabric square while reading an open sewing book with illustrated instructions on a cutting mat, working on a 30 minute project. Other fabric pieces for a corner bookmark are scattered nearby.

Grab your pile of half square triangles and make some corner bookmarks with these. They can sew up under the 10 minutes!

Becky Jorgensen

Becky Jorgensen is the creative quilter behind Patchwork Posse, the Patchwork Planner and her online quilt group Patchworkers Plus. You can find her patterns in books, magazines, and her quilt membership. Gather your quilting supplies, organize your sewing space, explore the process of disappearing quilt blocks, or finish a free quilt pattern. I'll help you use what you have, finish what you start and make your quilting journey fun!

Follow me here: Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube