My name is Lorine Mason, and I am thrilled to have been asked to share my enthusiasm for all things sewing related with all of you through the writing of this newsletter. I am basically a self-taught seamstress with the exception of a class here and there and of course the basic home economics classes in high school.

I think back to those days and remember being chastised by my teacher for sewing too far along, totally unsupervised, on my school project. Seeing my disappointed look, the teacher explained that she had no way of knowing who had actually completed the sewing and that I must sew along with the group during class only. The agony of having to wait between classes to finish my project impacted my sewing enthusiasm at the time. I eventually finished the apron and received a decent grade and now rejoice in sewing at my own pace every day.

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I was hooked early on, and my idea back then was to work in a fabric store. The thought of spending my day around fabric was absolutely thrilling. To this day, I get a secret thrill in placing a bolt of fabric onto the cutting table and watching as it is carefully measured out, all the while imagining how I intend to transform my purchase. Just in case you are wondering, I did manage to stand on the other side of the table, happily cutting fabric numerous times over the years.

Let's fast-forward through my marriage to my best friend, the birth of two wonderful daughters, numerous side businesses, going back to school and a series of jobs. Throw in a couple of cross-country moves and our family lands in Virginia. A new plan of action emerges; I think I know what I want to be when I grow up. I want to write about, teach, work with and help promote anything to do with fabric arts. Not much has changed really and I believe this newsletter is part of that journey.

I look forward to discussing all aspects of sewing in the coming months. Comments, questions and newsletter subject suggestions are all welcome. This time around, I have chosen to focus on buttons, and I have included a quick Easter Button project.

Button, Button Who's Got The Button?
I have always been fascinated by buttons. My mother had an old candy tin where she kept odd buttons. As a child, I loved to spread them onto the carpet and sort through the pile looking for hidden treasures. Buttons made from shells, those sparkling with inset gems and glossy glass buttons were among my favorites. It was a wonderful day indeed when that button tin was passed down to me. Over the years I added to the button collection and eventually had to expand the storage container as my collection burst out of the confines of the original tin. My mother's button tin was passed down to my eldest daughter, Jocelyn who now proudly displays it along with her own collection of sewing supplies.

When Did Buttons First Appear on Clothing?
A Fun History Lesson
Buttons have been around for over 3,000 years and although recognizable as buttons, they were not actually used to fasten anything. They were fashioned from bone, horn, wood, metal and seashells and were purely decorative, more like a brooch as pins were used for the closures. That remained the case until clothing became more fitted, creating a need for a closure using items less likely to cause injury, i.e. the pin or the brooch. The button was first used as a closure with the addition of a thread loop sewn on the opposite side of the garment. The buttonhole slowly evolved, starting out as a simple slit in the fabric just large enough to pass the button through, holding the clothing closed. Inspiring a fashion revolution, the button quickly became big business. More elaborate buttons and button holes were created, and their popularity quickly became a driving force in clothing design.

The history of buttons is quite fascinating and if you would like more information, I have listed a few sources that I have found extremely interesting.

ButtonImages.com
WorldCollectorsNet.com

The Big Book of Buttons
By Elizabeth Hughes and Marion Lester
New Leaf Publishers

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Button Boxes and Button Societies
Most homes still sport some sort of button box, ranging from a simple jar to hold the buttons snipped from the inside of a purchased garment to the most elaborate of collections. The popularity of button collecting has grown over the years with the main advantage being that even the thriftiest collector can start with only a small monetary investment. Buttons can range in price from a few cents for a handful of plastic buttons to thousands of dollars for a prized antique specimen. The National Button Society or NBS was started in 1938 and offers collectors opportunities in education, competition and seminars. Whether you are a serious button collector or just a fascinated onlooker, incorporating buttons in your next project might be just the thing to get you hooked on buttons.

The National Button Society
2733 Juno Place
Akron, Ohio 44333-04137
NationalButtonSociety.org

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Button Easter Egg Project Simple projects incorporating buttons make fun inexpensive gifts. Sew up a batch of these cute as a button eggs, and use them as hostess gifts or tuck one in an envelope and mail it to a loved one. Supplies you will need: Scraps of wool blend felt: Blue, yellow & white White shirt buttons of varying sizes One yard - 1/8" pink ribbon Steam-A-Seam 2 Double Stick Fusible Web Small amount of polyester batting Disappearing fabric marker Complementary colors of sewing thread Sewing machine Iron Basic sewing supplies Using the largest shape of each of the egg patterns (PDF format) provided, cut two pieces of white felt for each egg and set aside. Following the manufacturer's directions, press fusible web to the back of pieces of blue and yellow felt. Trace the smaller egg shape of each of the patterns onto the paper backing of either the blue or yellow felt. Cut along the drawn lines. Remove the paper backing from the egg shapes and press them onto another color of felt, leaving 1” between each shape, roughly cut around the egg shape leaving a 1/2” border. Mark a horizontal line down the center front of the egg shape using the disappearing fabric marker. Using a decorative stitch on your sewing machine and a pretty color of thread and sew along the marked line. Continue sewing decorative rows of stitching with a variety of thread colors; using the center row of stitching as a guide for placement. Trim away excess thread ends. Place buttons onto the stitched egg front in a pleasing fashion. When happy with the placement, use a needle and thread to stitch buttons in place through both layers of the felt. Use a pair of scalloped scissors to trim around the bottom layer of felt, following the egg shape and leaving a 1/16” border. Remove the paper backing from the fusible web, and press the stitched egg to the second layer of white felt cut earlier. Stitch 1/16” in from the outside edge of the egg shape, leaving a 2” opening along one side. Insert small pieces of batting; lightly stuffing the egg shape. Return to your sewing machine and stitch the opening closed. Tie a two-loop bow, and hand stitch it in place. Alternately sew a large button in place of the ribbon bow. Click on the above image for a printer-friendly PDF version of the templates. Copyright© March 2009 Sewing Savvy newsletter Vol.7 No. 5. All Rights Reserved. Click here for a printer-friendly version.

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