Here's an interesting trio of enormous sweater buttons from the 1920's or 30's in a color that's hard to identify. In my view, these are a brownish toffee tone when laid out in the daylight and more of a brownish green-apple indoors. They're also a bit more green looking in person, but that's Bakelite for you—often unwilling to be accurately photographed. What's more, these buttons are designed with wide, triangular buttonholes that look like hourglasses if not eyeholes on sinister masks.
All in all, a smart and hipstery set!
-Sherbert McGee
Why not celebrate for the sake of celebration? If it's your birthday today, Happy Birthday; and if it's not your birthday today, Happy Birthday anyway. The world needs more joy and here's a joyful button. It's a scalloped party favor in creamed corn Bakelite, speckled with greens and reds and maybe even some rare bits of blue. An end-of-day button from the Roaring Twenties. Enjoy!
-Sherbert McGee
Locusts are large tropical grasshoppers that are mentioned throughout the Bible in connection to plagues. Aristotle studied them. John the Baptist ate them. And Egyptians famously carved them on their tombs. As part of the art deco era, this glamorous cherry toggle is carved into a stylized locust that harks back to the Egyptian craze of the 1920's and 30's. It tested positive for Bakelite.
-Sherbert McGee
Here's a stunning button in the art nouveau style. While we're on the subject, let's get a definition of art nouveau since this style and the art deco style are often confused and warrant clarification:
Art Nouveau (ärt no͞oˈvō)
"A style of decorative art, architecture and design prominent in western Europe and the US from about 1890 until World War I and characterized by intricate linear designs and flowing curves based on natural forms."
Today's post features several hallmarks of an art nouveau masterstroke, not so much with the black Bakelite that provides the base for this highly ornate button, but with that marvelous escutcheon—a chunk of old metal detailing three snaky frills that grip a central orb. Look at the textural specifics of this meticulous construction! The effect is almost Celtic with its emblematic stateliness. Getting back to the Bakelite, the black plastic is carved with striped cuts and twelve shallow etchings, all of which enhance this button's already very exciting visual appeal. Before this year is through I'll be posting a full week of art nouveau buttons. Consider this an advanced teaser.
Visit Doreen's online store:
BUTTONS FROM THE ATTIC
-Sherbert McGee
Blazingly sinister, this terribly gorgeous button exudes a diabolical vibe that has me spellbound! It's a two-tone button with brightly polished orange juice Bakelite at rest on a mound of licorice Bakelite. The buttons is deeply carved for an ominous result. Look at the sea of fiery swirls that glisten in the strange contours of the sculpted OJ Bakelite. If this button were a ring, I'll bet it would fit perfectly on the devil's hand! Spooky and brimming with resplendent hellfire. Circa 1929.
-Sherbert McGee
Aloha! Once upon a time, I lived in Hawaii as a college student where I tried poi and went surfing and got sunburned routinely on the shores of Hanauma Bay. And boy oh boy, did I ever eat lots of pineapples! That's what brings me to this button. With its funny slant and bumpy rind, it looks like a chocolate pineapple wedge—straight from the famous Dole plantation on Oahu. Look closely and you can see my fingerprint on this Bakelite beauty. From the 1920's.
Visit Doreen's online store:
BUTTONS FROM THE ATTIC
-Sherbert McGee
