All things buttons & more …
Here are three wooden buttons which I think could have been made in India. The large round one is carved and has a brass circle inset in the middle. The square one is set in a brass back and has a square brass embellishment. The round one is inlaid with brass and mother of pearl. They are nicely made and quite different.
I actually bought these buttons in a Cheap shop and they were amongst craft and scrapbooking items. They are what I would call modern paste buttons and they are deep red stones glued into a metal base. I was quite surprised to see them there. So you never know where you may find buttons and that is half the fun. They measure 24 mm.
I bought this beaded button in 2017 and it was made by Helen Pappas who now lives near Benalla. It is much brighter in reality. Over the years she has made hundreds of buttons; many quirky embroidered ones as well as the beaded ones. I admire her work as it is very fine and time consuming.
Here is an excerpt from a past NBB magazine which shows photos and an article about enamel buttons from the early 1900s. I was pleased to read it as it displayed a button that I have in my collection. I show a photo of my button in shades of green and pink. It is interesting to see what type of garment the buttons were used on. I would love more of these pictures as it adds so much meaning to the button.
I love this button because of it’s Art Deco design and also it’s striking colour. It is a dirty grey green which contrasts nicely with the black lines so is quite dramatic. The leaf is a glittery gold and a real feature. It measures a little over 2 1/2 cm.
Here is a Beutron buttons advertisement from the Australian Women’s Weekly from March 5th, 1952. I have attached one original button card costing one shilling and threepence and several individual buttons down the bottom. They are all plastic and the colours are more subtle than those of today. So much more effort was put into the advertising back then.
These Fashion buttons feature a back to back letter C which is the logo for Coco Chanel; born Gabrielle Chanel in 1883 in France. She died in 1971 and was a Fashion Designer. Although the buttons are not what you would call pretty they are distinctive in their design. She also designed jewellery, handbags and fragrance.
Just for a bit of fun I bought these novelty elf buttons in 2008. Surely they would only be of use in a craft or quilting project. They are bright and cheeky and that is all I can say about them.
These porcelain buttons are made by Melissa Grant under the name Giggle Buttons and are mainly used as craft embellishments. These four belong to a friend of mine but I have the bottom two. They used to be advertised in various Craft magazines in the early 2000s.
I rather like modern coconut shell buttons and they have been in the shops over the last few years; perhaps not just now. I have a nice collection of them be they natural, painted or glazed. Here are three with different designs and quite colourful. I guess they were fairly easily made and plentiful and I think not too costly to produce.