Button Floozies

I recently happened upon an estate sale and found this jar of buttons; instead of a price, there was a sticker on it that said, Make an Offer. Unfortunately, it was a cash-only sale and I found I only had $2 and some change with me, so I offered that and went home with the jar.  This morning I had the pleasure of sorting through it! I could see through the jar that it contained a whole lot of those little "extra button" envelopes, so I thought $2 was probably going to end up being a fair price for it. But then I saw a whole bunch of full cards clipped together... and eventually uncovered lots of my favorite buttons -- shell and mother-of-pearl. There were some pretty glass buttons, too, and these fabulous lucite studded with paste ones, and some that were fancy and beaded. Overall, I think it was a great haul, and a Saturday surprise.  Have you bought any button grab bags lately?

I spotted this three-tiered, button-decorated lampshade at the thrift store!  It's actually a hanging (pendant) lamp/chandelier.    It needed some cleaning, but, if I had a place for it, it definitely would have come home with me!

Here are some of the latest buttons that have come into my life!  A Salesman's Sample Book full of button pages -- the buttons are very common, but still lovely to see all arranged and numbered by hand! A lot of new-in-the-package, fancy buttons for embellishing! These cute "mother/daughter" buttons with an umbrella theme! Show me your newest buttons!

I was thrilled to finally have the chance to visit the huge antique market at RoundTop, Texas last week!  Please visit my blog for lots of photos!

It's that time again: National Button Week , the week set aside to celebrate buttons and collecting them! For me, every week is button week, because I love and enjoy all of my collection.   This is the latest "grab bag" of buttons I bought at the thrift store...   and here were my favorite picks for crafting and gifting from that lot:  These were my favorite cards... and these were my favorite novelties -- how sweet are those little pink dogs and green ducks? This is my favorite creation I've made using buttons lately.  I created 10 of these hearts, 8 of which were for a swap.  Everything except the center heart fabric is vintage!  The center heart fabric is part of Andover's  Downton Abbey line, and was the inspiration for the whole thing! The little button bouquet below was a heartfelt gift from a new friend I met through our mutual love of crafting with vintage!  The buttons on the cards are actually fa...

I rescued some more buttons bags from the thrift store this weekend, and took time to sort them on a cold, dreary afternoon, which I find so relaxing . There were carded buttons, many of which were very common and unexciting:  Common  Better - complete, and would make for good crafting, as well as nice little gifts Best - pretty cards, mother of pearl, glass, and charming old plastic -- check out the pretty blue mother of pearl embedded in Lucite card in the middle There were also these sad little "sick" buttons that would've been so pretty with their pink paste jewels -- but I'm doubtful they can be saved. Tons of colorful buttons that are perfect for crafts Some lovely glass and china buttons including these old, interesting buttons that are like paperweights -- very tiny ovals, with flowers under glass older embellished "shell" buttons, and some fun sparkly gem buttons And -- always my favorite -- mother of pearl and shell; I...

We're starting off the new year with lots of button excitement for the upcoming Spring button club shows; here in Colorado, they've announced ours, Westward Button Trails , for April 6-8, 2018! I lucked upon a button find at the thrift store Friday; a package of common (but fun!) buttons on cards. The ones in the bottom row are my favorites!  As you can see, most of the cards are simply manila paper that has been cut and the buttons sewn on -- not original cards. I admire such organized sewers! One thing I found interesting was that there were two cards from different eras, both by Le Chic, of the same buttons.  One obviously older, as it was priced lower. I hope to see many of your button finds and creative uses in this new year!