Buttons, Buttons, Who Has the Buttons
Button solutions:
Whenever we get rid of any clothing that is too far gone to be given away and still have me feel good about giving it away, we snip the buttons off and save them for use elsewhere. A good button box can also be used to help give small children practice in matching shapes or colors, or counting practice, or making an artistic design by laying them out on the floor, or just fun sorting.
Whenever we come across thrift shop or yard sale clothing for a quarter or two (or less) we look it over for good buttons and sometimes buy an outfit just for the buttons, which we snip off and add to the button jar, throwing away the clothing (unless it makes good rags).
I have a denim skirt with black buttons. The bottom button broke and I needed a quick fix and none of the buttons in our stash quite worked (and we live too far from town to run to the shop for a single button). I did, however, find a cream coloured button the same shape and nearly the same size as the other buttons on my skirt. I used a permanent marker and colored it black and then sewed it onto the skirt. I sewed the bottom portion of the skirt shut as well so that I would be less likely to lose the buttons again.
I have two dresses that have exactly the same style of button- one is a very fancy black velvet number and the other a forest green dress that is dressy enough for church or a military wives' brunch. Their duplicate buttonos is a complete accident since the dresses were purchased at thrift shops in separate states. When my husband was active duty military, sometimes I had to attend semi-formal functions with him, and I usually wore the black velvet number for the evening functions, the green knit dress for daytime events.
The buttons are a fancy sort of celtic knot pattern with a shank. I can't find a matching button. Buttons with shanks can be safety pinned to clothing from the back, so when I lost a button off of one of those two dresses I snipped a button loose from the other and now safety pin it (like a brooch) to whichever dress I wish to wear.
Do you have any tricks and tips for buttons?
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6 Responses to “Buttons, Buttons, Who Has the Buttons”
June 5th, 2009 at 7:16 am
I didn’t even know people kept button jars anymore but always did think it was a good idea back in the “old days”. When we stayed with Grandma Fiske, it was a special treat for us when she would get out the button jar and let us look at them all!
June 13th, 2009 at 4:15 pm
I do the same thing with buttons, cutting them off clothes and giving the rest to my husband to use for rags in the garage. I have seen several expensive tops with large buttons that were all totally different but about the same size. I am going to use this idea, as soon as I find several pretty and unique buttons, and sew them to a nice summer sweater I have that is missing one.
June 15th, 2009 at 7:35 pm
Have you ever let your kids make button strings? Dexterity, design, repeating motifs, and a pretty necklace to wear for a day or two, all from a piece of quilting thread and buttons from mama’s button box.
July 19th, 2009 at 8:23 pm
cool site – stumbled upon it searching for something and I like it!!
9 kids – you have to be frugal! right on..
January 9th, 2010 at 4:37 pm
I always save buttons too, they come in handy for not only clothes but for craft projects. I learned this frugal tip from my mom & grandma. Most people do have a button jar(recycled pickle or mason jar)that were raised to reuse things.
January 9th, 2010 at 5:36 pm
I love buttons and always look for that jar of buttons stashed away in sewing boxes at estate sales. A friend of mine just showed me a collection of victorian buttons that her Grandmother had given her before passing. They are gorgeous and a real treasure. For Christmas this year she made a pair of earrings for her elderly mother and they are wonderful. Her mother remembered the outfit they were from and was soooo happy! I only wish my family had not been so quick to throw things away and be minimalists. I surely did not inherit those genes.
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