I love buttons. This is the contents of my button tin, tipped out onto one of my favourite trays. I’ve been collecting these buttons for as long as I can remember – some were handed down by great grandmothers, some were spare buttons from clothes long gone, others (like the frogs, ducks and butterflies) bought online because they caught my fancy. In the middle of the picture are three silver buttons with stars – spares from my wedding dress which I made myself five years ago. When I was a child, I used to tip out my buttons on to one of mum’s trays and sift through them looking for my favourites – a starfish, some that look like a robot face, others I think are pretty.
And then some ugly ones – big, brown monstrosities – who would choose these?
So many memories contained in one small tin. Perfect.
As a kid, I loved to go through my mother’s button tin. Though I am an only child, it didn’t get passed along to me. Probably, I made insufficient effort when it became available.
Nonetheless, I’ve had a button connection of my own, though a bit different from yours.
While teaching at the middle school level, I would search out and purchase buttons (pins) wherever I saw them, and select one to wear at school. Over the yeas, I collected them on a bulletin board where they still hang today.
Will I pass them on someday?
http://runeman.org/buttons/buttons-sm.jpg
I hope you do pass them on! I also have a collection of those sorts of buttons – badges as we call them over here, but often they get lost as they fall off my coat.
Remember collecting political buttons at various meetings, demonstrations and conventions as a kid. Most were not allowed to be worn at school though I did manage to have my “Question Authority” button proudly on display when called to the guidance counselor’s.
My sister does quilts from all the wild coloured family shirts and skirts and told me no matter how crazy the patterns are, the buttons are always very plain.