Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

I don’t typically use bookmarks. Over the years I’ve sort of grown out of them and I haven’t actually bought one since high school, nearly 10 years if my guess is correct. With that said, there are a ton of things that I’ve used over the years to mark my place in a book. And while this list isn’t exactly fully in order of most favored, the number one will always be the bookmark I go to the most.

10.  Business Cards

This one isn’t super common, but I have done it from time to time.

9. The Bookmark String

You know those strings that sometimes are attached to the book cover? I love those. I obviously don’t use them often since they aren’t included in most books, but I’ve always found them so useful.

8. Sticky Notes!

I use these far more often at work than I do at home to help my students mark their places in books than anything else. After all, sometimes kids can’t be expected to remember exactly where they left off in the story they read–and some can be sneaky about trying to decrease their reading load–and so plopping a sticky note right next to the sentence they left off on works wonders.

7. The Dust Cover

If you can read a hardcover book and not use its dust cover flap as a way to mark your place, I may question whether or not you’re real. It’s just such an easy placeholder and it’s one that you never–hopefully–lose.

6. Actual Bookmarks

I used to have some of these. I still do, somewhere, but I don’t really use them. There was a time when I was obsessed with my Kingdom Hearts bookmarks, but over the years I’ve just kind of lost them among all of my possessions.

5. Table / Countertop

This is honestly another of my most common bookmarks and I’ve grown to regret it on occasion over the years when I accidentally end up putting my book somewhere where something might get on the pages. But the truth is that the easiest bookmark to have is just leaving the book open.

4. Photographs

This one isn’t as common anymore, but I used to do this all the time when I was a teenager. I’ve since grown a little more protective of my pictures, but I still like to use them occasionally if I have extras.

3. Mail

I’ve been using this a lot more lately, which is really the only reason it’s so high on the list. But my puppy gets a lot of postcards from his vet whenever we’re due for an appointment. They always have an adorable picture of a border collie on the front and so it works as a really awesome bookmark.

2. Love Notes

Yes, I’m one of these. I have, on many occasions, used notes as my bookmark. My favorite is one that came in a bouquet of roses that I once got on my anniversary.

1. Finger

Honestly, this is my most common bookmark. I usually just hold my place with my finger for a few moments before getting back to my spot in the book. Ironically, I’m pretty good at remembering where I left off in a book, so I don’t typically use bookmarks, but on those occasions where I have to briefly do something else, it’s the finger I use. In an ideal world, I would never have to put down my book and therefore would never need a bookmark.

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