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The day I got this Ivory button was my lucky day. I was in an opp shop in a tiny country town looking for buttons. Another customer asked me what I wanted buttons for and I told her I was a button collector. She had an amazed look on her face and said I have a tin of old buttons at home that I don’t want. To cut a long story short I went to the lady’s home and got a tin of dusty old buttons from her. There were some good buttons and right at the bottom was this dragon Ivory button which was a real bonus. So you never know where or when you may come upon a treasure. They all needed a good clean but that is part of the fun to see them come up nicely.

This Bakelite button has a white metal escutcheon with a topaz glass oblong stone set in it. The bakelite is dark brown which is a common colour for the time. The escutcheon is rivetted on as can be seen on the back and it has a metal loop shank. I guess it is an overcoat button.

I have a set of 12 of these Passementerie buttons which are very old. They have been made of silk thread wound over a wooden button mould then stitched or crocheted in a star type pattern over the top. They have a thread back. You can tell they are handmade as they are a little of centre and not exactly the same. They measure a little over 2 cm.

Here are two old fabric buttons with a thread back. The fabric is a sort of brocade and is rather pretty. There being no actual shank you attach the button by sewing under a few threads. They are not very big.

This group of Ceramic buttons are much brighter in reality. They are simplistic drawings of various fruit outlined in black, They are sew through type and quite small at 1 1/2 cm.

This is a brass picture button featuring a Geisha girl and some Cherry blossom. On the right is what looks like Japanese symbols. It is mounted on a large orange plastic disc and that is as I bought it. It measures a little over 3 1/2 cm and has a brass loop shank.

These novelty ceramic buttons are made in South Africa for Incomparable Buttons. They are quite unique and just a bit of fun. One card shows chooks while the other says on the farm, showing animals and a tractor. I think they could only be used on craft projects. Who would want a chook button on their dress?

These two black glass buttons are pretty with their painted areas in purple and green. They are then highlighted with gold lustre and have an Art Deco look about them. They have a self shank and measure 2 cm. They are much nicer in reality. Purple and green are two of my favourite colours so perhaps I am biased!

Here is a black glass picture button showing a waterwheel and possibly a flour mill. The detail is very good. It has a brass loop shank and measures a little over 2 1/2 cm. I have only two black glass picture buttons in my collection.

I believe these buttons may be pewter and depict a snowflake. They could have been made in Norway during the 1960s and 70s especially for ski sweaters. A lot of the designs were snow related.