Michael and I were browsing some secondhand books in a bookshop a few days ago, and I noticed that a lot of the older ones had personalized bookplates. It's an element you don't see very often anymore, and I've often wondered why. Is it because there's such a big secondhand market now, thanks to websites like Amazon and Half.com, and so people have stopped personalizing their books in order to keep resale value high? Is it because people don't have such a sense of ownership in a home library nowadays? Or maybe it's just because mass market paperbacks are so prevalent today, reducing the uniqueness and rarity of a single copy. Whatever the reason, bookplates just don't seem to be in vogue these days, which is a shame, considering the all the design possibilities they present. But if you're one of the few bookplate lovers out there, MarthaStewart.com has some 1930s-inspired bookplates available for download (for free!) that are pretty charming. Click here for instructions and to download the template PDF.
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