As a child, I spent many hours fascinated by my grandmother's button collection. I would sort the buttons by color and make separate piles for the prettiest, sparkliest ones. I wondered who had worn them and how they had come to rest with the others in the clear Mason jar on my grandmother's shelf. I never got satisfactory answers to these questions, so I made up my own stories.
When my grandmother passed away last year, her button collection became mine. Though I am normally not very crafty, I was inspired by the Moondiamonds shop on Etsy to make something from my grandmother's buttons and jewelry scraps. I collected some supplies from around the house:
A few shadow boxes/ display frames that I had picked up at a thrift store for $1.50 each
Some adhesive-backed black felt
Hot glue gun
Bag of jewelry scraps and buttons
First, I cut the felt to fit into the shadow box. Then I started going through the buttons just like I did when I was a kid, picking out my favorites. It's funny how I still remembered them.
Once I had the design laid out like I wanted, I set to gluing the buttons and beads to the felt.
Next, I did the same for a second design.
Once everything was dry, I removed the adhesive from the felt pieces and placed them inside of the shadow boxes. It is a pretty way to enjoy my grandmother's buttons and to honor a memory during the holidays.
To see another artistic tribute to my grandmother, check out Start to Finish: Pouring Watercolor for step-by-step photos of how I created this painting:
