Where does a bookplate go in a book?

This is a great question I get every so often. The short answer is, there's really no 'official' place to put a bookplate, it can vary depending on the type of books you own and want to mark! A quick tip is that you don't have to always 'centre' your bookplate, corners can equally be an interesting place to put a bookplate. I've also seen bookplates on top of the previous owner's bookplate (if you own second hand books)! That's always a fun surprise to see. If you have a book with a childhood bookplate, perhaps put your latest bookplate beside it? Choosing a place to put a bookplate can be poetic and fun. Now onto the list! 

1. On the endpapers

For a hardback book this is an easy choice as endpapers tend to be decorative (illustrated, marbled or otherwise) or one colour. It's particularly great to see bookplates matching with the endpapers like the header image (Crossing the Seas bookplate stickers with Peter Pan endpapers). If it's a busy design of endpapers then try opting for the next flyleaf page. 

2. Inside front cover

For soft cover books, this space is often clean and devoid of text making it the perfect space for a bookplate. Madeline chose our English Garden bookplate stickers which is our best selling design!

3. Half or full title page

The half title page in both soft cover and hard back books is usually the page with just the book title in a small font.  The next fly leaf page would have the full title page along with author name and publisher logo (some books may only just have the full title page). Either of these pages make for a good spot to place a bookplate as there's usually white space on the page. There's also something nice about putting a bookplate on the same page with the book title, it feels almost extra official. 

As with anything, there are no hard and fast rules, just have fun with it :) 

PS Looking for your own personalised bookplate? Check out Fleur & Fable's range of bookplate stamps and stickers! 

 

 

Jessica Le is the founder of Fleur & Fable. She writes about bookplates and is a member of The New Australian Bookplate Society.

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