Allie's Adornments - The button files

Owl get it! Before & after.

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 13:26:44 -0800

Before & after a lot of scrubbing with steel wool & brass cleaner.

Love child of the Lone Ranger & the Gibson Girl.

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 20:08:53 -0800

The Gibson girl was a feminine ideal of the Art Nouveau period created by illustrator Charles Gibson. She was an early standard of beauty, youth & fashion and often portrayed with her hair piled atop her head in order to accent a graceful neck.
This card of Parisian buttons was a great find, though they look as if they were attacked by someone who was a bit too heavy handed with the patina. The bottom pictures show a few after they were cleaned.

Parisian Twinkle buttons.

Tue, 06 Jul 2010 21:03:12 -0800

Victorian twinkle buttons, that have a reflective inner layer that is meant to provide additional shine & brilliance; unused on their original cards.

Vibrant.

Sat, 19 Jun 2010 23:57:34 -0800

I vended at the Cupertino Cherry Blossom festival in April. There was a lady there who was telling her friend that there was no way that the buttons I use were Victorian. Pardon? The colors were too bright she said. Yes, well that's because I try to purchase as many unused cards of buttons as I can afford. Just because the photos from that era are black & white, doesn't mean that their clothing was too.

Screw back buttons?

Sat, 19 Jun 2010 23:51:49 -0800

These were probably used in the very early 1800's, since the little card that these were attached to is over 50 years old.

Button Cards.

Sat, 17 Apr 2010 12:57:09 -0800

Getting a full card of buttons is always a thrill. Even a partial card of buttons is a great find. However, the cards they come on are not always such a treat. In fact, 100+ year-old cardboard that's been exposed to too many elements can be down right disgusting. Like in the top picture, some are rusty, moldy, or crumble at the slightest touch. Others will surprise & delight as much as the buttons with their charming artwork.

Before and after.

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 21:56:34 -0800

I found a very nice lot of hidden gems. These are mother-of-pearl with cut steel escutcheons and brass with cut steel facets & escutcheons. The gems were hidden under a lot of rust, but after several hours of scrubbing with a bit of elbow grease, metal polish, steel wool & dish soap, the majority were salvageable.

Mr Shiney Sun.

Wed, 20 May 2009 12:30:45 -0800

Antique Victorian buttons with sun faces, made in Paris, France.

Cut steel buttons from Paris.

Mon, 18 May 2009 23:13:55 -0800

These were a great find! Cut steel buttons were at the height of men's fashions in the mid 1700's for adding additional brilliance to wealthy gents clothing. Cut steel buttons made a resurgence in the mid 1800's for well-to-do ladies wear, and are highly collectible today.

Feels like I stole it!

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 19:45:17 -0800

For some reason I've happened upon lots of extremely nice cards of Parisian buttons lately. I purchased many and lusted after others. After what I've spent on buttons just in January, I fully expected these to be way out of my price range. They have many of the qualities that many collectors look for. Full card of Paris buttons? Check. Cardboard card still intact? Check. Near mint? Check. Pink? (always a popular & highly sought after color) Check. Bird design? (also very popular) Check!

I fully expected to shell out into triple digits for these, & yet, I didn't. Not even close. It's the thrill of the hunt, and when that hunt ends in a screaming deal, it's a high like none other.