Did you also play with buttons as a child? Has two buttons I got from my grandmother when I was 5 years old, never used them. Still like the one with flowers. Think it is handpainted. Going to make a brosch. And I aslo got the tin my grandmother stored her buttons, Now I have mine there

I, too, was a button girl.
My grandma, who lived next door on a corner block in a magic house that had a cellar where Grandpa kept his store of oranges and other incredible stuff to stock his little corner shop that was built about four steps from their back door, had a large draw-string bag hanging behind her kitchen door filled with those magic buttons. They were brought out for me quite often to look at, feel, count and just love. Maybe that was the where I caught the 'collection bug'.
I can't actually remember what those buttons looked like and I guess most of them would have been utility buttons for shirts and trousers since both Grandma and Grandpa, even though I've found out in later life that they were quite rich, made 'make do and wear it out' their life-long mantra. Grandpa used to give my brother and me one PK chewing gum piece each to chew up and then give back to him so that he could mend a hole in an old saucepan; Grandma mended Grandpa's slippers with old carpeting; Grandpa and Grandma were the tightest-fisted pair in the world..... but, Grandpa had that magic shop and Grandma had that magic bag of buttons.
What memories you have brought back to me!!!!
This is the sort of wonderful thing about this List. Buttons!!..... from the days when embroidery machines weren't even an idea but hand-embroidery was done by all the little girls and their mothers and grand-mothers. My enduring memory of Grandma, apart from her button bag which I'm sure never saw a drop of water because my memory of it is a slightly grimy, kitcheny sort of cotton fabric, is of her sitting in the sun that streamed through the little kitchen window and she'd be there in her black dress and copious apron, sitting sideways on the chair to catch all the light possible, making the most magnificent tatting lace and motifs with her shuttle that just simply flew from one knot to another.
Back to buttons.... I have boxes, tins, jars and plastic containers full of buttons, neatly sorted, and one day I hope all my daughters get to enjoy them just as I have, but, except for a few from my mother's small lot, my collection pretty much started from scratch about 57 years ago when I was married and started sewing for my house and family. I would have so much valued and treasured any buttons from Grandma. I wonder whatever became of them!!!!!!
I'm pretty sure that my love of my buttons far exceeds my love of my extensive fabric stash!
AlmaG.

3 comments

by almag 30 Mar 2014

Oh My Goodness.... this really is a long one, isn't it.... :}

by anitapatch 30 Mar 2014

Thank you for sharing your memories

by pacmp 09 Apr 2014

I loved reading of this happy memory and also enjoyed that it was a longer post, as I seem incapable of writing a short post. Once I go over a sentence or two the post shoot up to being long ones. Thanks for sharing. If that is a ridged whitish cream button I have quite a few of them if you are needing them for a project.

Oh my Buttons i love them .My grammie collected them and as kids we threaded them on thin elastic for her .My Mother collected them and hay guess who has all there buttons ??Yep ME!!I got so many i been sending some to friends who will use them and not look and feel them hugs

I loved my grandmothers button jar. I still have them. Funny how some are your favorites and you never use them. When you look at them they bring up nice memories. I guess those who play with buttons end up being sewers and do emboridery too. hehe Suzanne

I love my buttons. I inherited mine (thousands of them) from my mother-in-law as I was the only one in the family that sews. I have many beautiful ones also. I get a little frightened to use some of them for fear of loosing them. I treasure the memories. I miss her very much. x

I too have always loved playing with buttons. I still at times dump mine out and sort and play with them! What is a broach? Hugs. Nan

1 comment

by anitapatch 30 Mar 2014

Google translate says brooch

I have all my mothers and grandmothers buttons but where the tins went - I do not know. Every once in a while I just go through them and they take me back to some wonderful memories.

1 comment

by hightechgrammy 29 Mar 2014

Hi Sarah, I'm not sure if I have any exact memories, but i sure get warm, warm feelings.

Love buttons, have my moms and MIL, use them for all kinds of fun projects, as well as clothes. Love the flowery one. You can use some of them for making covered buttons for decorations...sew your buttons on be they shank or have the holes and before you cinch them down tight, simple make a circular piece of fabric zig-zag edges, gather fit over the button and using this thread tighten and stitch through the piece you are decorating; or if use same method and fasten with glue to the object. :)

I have my mums button tin also ,and my grandchildren love to play with them,,,, thanks for sharing

Such a simple thing...but so loved by children. My mother never had buttons...and my Grandma died when I was 6 so never had that experience....but I still love buttons and would go thought the big basket of buttons at the craft store to search for the ones that were "just right".



I also love the tin such a nice memory of Grandma.


Muffy :)

This reminded me of my childhood with my Nanna - she had thousands of buttons as she was a seamstress. I too have hundreds and let Ophelie and Aqualina play with them. They love all the character buttons - and I do too! Love Chris

Just seeing your buttons and hearing what others are saying made tears well up inside me and a warm, comforting feeling glow too. I remember playing with my grandmother's buttons, and I have some of them, and now some of my Mom's old buttons. What to do with them, though, is my question?

1 comment

by Leaha 28 Mar 2014

I've seen lamps made with them.
Store them in the sewing room within an antique jar.
Use them to decorate a picture frame of a child
Make bracelets with them, sew them to the ribbon and tie off.

when my sister, my brother and me were ill and had to stay in bed we have got my mothers box with buttons to play ( now more than 50 years ago). A few weeks I asked my mother for the box and chose all the motherofpearl buttons in various forms. looking forward to a project to use them.i

Buttons were kept in a draw string bag when I was a little girl and I was allowed to play with them on special occasions. When I was expecting my first child I made a drawstring bag to put my buttons in. I had two boys!!!!

yes I did play with them too. The floral one is beautiful indeed! and so special it belonged to your grandmother. Thank you for showing!

I love the floral one, too. My grandmother must not have had a button collection, but she did save wooden spools and we found many ways to play with them. I wish I still had them.

I do like buttons! I really like old tins. They were so beautifully decorated. The flower button is very pretty.

I don't ever remember playing with them,altho I did like to look through them.I also,had a friend when I first married, that gave me some.She was german and worked in a button factory,close to where we lived.I still have them.Her name was Gidi,don't know if that is the correct spelling.

I love buttons and I did very young. My Grandmother had more than a steamer trunk full from where she took them off clothes she made into strips for her weaving projects. So it was like landing into a treasure chest. The old porcelain, hand painted, glass, shell, leather, Metal with rhinestones, Wooden and on a few occassions found a old hat pin. I love your pretty table runner as well as your lovely tin.