Guest Post: Thrift store treasure: buttons!

I am thrilled to share a guest post with you from one of my March Sponsors!  Grab a glass of sweet tea and enjoy:

I’m Laurie Jackson, a March sponsor and happy to be guest blogging today on Design to Shine!  If you’ve ever stopped by to visit my blog, Indulge Your Shelf, you’ll know that I love to shop at stores like Goodwill just as much as Sherri does!  To me, it’s a treasure hunt, and my idea of treasure is antique china, vintage kitsch, old linens, lace, trim…and buttons.

The photo above is part of my button haul the other day.  I was at an ARC charity store and found all those buttons in a plastic bag, hidden amongst the balls of yarn, bags of ribbon, and sewing patterns.  The bag was $1.99.

I use buttons all the time as embellishments in my sewing projects, and in my paper art.  But I also collect them, and these glass buttons in different shapes and colors are a lovely addition to my collection!

To me, buttons are tiny works of art, and the vintage and antique ones evoke history and the romance of a bygone era.

If you feel the same way about buttons, please join us on Button Floozies, another blog of mine that is actually a button community.  There are more than 70 people who write and share photos of their buttons, button projects, and button-related information on the blog.  Right now, we are taking sign ups for a swap to create a button-decorated fabric needlebook.  Also, a British author who wrote a button book is giving away three copies of her book in honor of National Button Week!  There’s always something button-y going on at Button Floozies!

Many of the buttons above are made from shell; mother-of-pearl buttons are among my very favorite to collect and I especially love the carved and/or specially shaped ones, like the stars in the lower left corner.  Shell is among the oldest material for button-making, and do you know that by studying antique buttons, scientists can learn about ancient ocean temperature and depths.

The stars and shapes above are made from an early plastic that is today prized by collectors: Bakelite.  The little red key was another hidden treasure; probably part of an old brooch, it will find its way to being repurposed into a piece of my jewelry!

Of course, in practically every thrift store button tin or bag you will find something other than buttons…

such as these beads and baubles; the red and brown button-like objects above are classified as “trim”: think sequins, but with two holes.

At the same store on the same day, I found the above box of sorted buttons.  It was priced at $4.99.  There were enough buttons in there for all your craft projects – plus plenty to share!

And some of them are quite charming!

This box held a real treasure:

a studio “watch crystal” button, with a sweing theme.  These buttons are collectible and this one is worth every bit (and more) of the $5 I paid for the whole box!

If you share my love of buttons, crafting, and thrift store treasure-hunting, come on by one of my blogs!  Any friend of Sherri’s is a friend of mine!


Awww THANKS Laurie for being such a wonderful blog friend and for being one of my very first sponsors.   YOU are a 'real treasure'!