Page 12 - May1954

202 NATIONAI, BUTTON BULI,ETIN May, 1954

A brochette is a spindle with a fine point, which turns freely. A button
*oiO i. i,threaded'; through a center hole and the hole stuck down on the
,p;afi then as the spinalie turns the mold is wound with thread. A simple
;;;; i; provided witl nothing bevond mechanical motion' Some patterns
can also-be made merely by directing the eourse of the thread. Many
patterns, however, requirL b;th the wrapping of the thread and the inter-
iu.i"g oi it, which means that a needle must be emploved' A cover made
;; th; brociiette is distinguishecl by the way the thread is used as explained
in the two detailed articles mentioned.
cord eovers are those made of textile strands twisted together into
a maierial of heavier weight than we would ordinarily call -"thread," or of
u ri-iiu" material made b-y wrapping flne thread around a thick, string-like
Lo"L. t*i*ted cord is usually-made of strands of the same variety and
i"*t""",- ittougn they may be of different colors. 'Wrapped cord is made
oi u cnbap coie, socL as crude cotton, bound with. silk or highly mercerized
thread.
The term .'crochet" has been given such a loose meaning in the button
trade that we must look into our own use of it. on page 213 this topic
is taken up at length.
Needlewrought means literally "made with a sewing needle." AII of
these covers arJmade directly on the mold and are not, as with crochet
buttons, made separately and attached. Buttons covers trimmed with
embroitierv, or otfer kinds of needlework, do not belong here; the entire
cover must be made with the needle.
Dorset buttons are what might be called the original wash buttons, made
of linen thread and intended chiefly for wear upon shirts and undergarments'
ih;t-;; found both in flat, sew_thru construction and in chunky
r-r,ri"*. As is well-known the names derives from the fact that Dorset
waJa center for making buttons of this kind.
Leedsisaname'likeDorset,withgeographicaloligin.Asthisregion
was the center of the English silk indus[ry from the 1?th century onward,
tne nuttons mado there were of silk. Although woven silk b-uttons lirere
made there as early as the 18th century, it is the needlework ones that
cany the name.
As far as the texture of the work is concerned, many of the covers
needlewrought from sittr tnreaA are of such flne, precise perfection and
iiiGit"i"i*so similar io *ou"o ones, that one could easily mistake them
io"l"oau"tr of the loom. A simple general rule to follow in avoiding some
*i.futeJ is to remembu" tnut leeds buttons are always made over a mold;
never over a metal shell.
Passementerie, early, is a class which will probably be dropped out
-pian
ot tnis seciion when the for segregation what we now call 18th centurv
fotlo"r is carried out. For the presenl it is included here to make a place
for buttons made on ine lrocnefte and with the needle of metallic thread
as well as animal and vegetable fibers.
Thread-with-thread (double covers) is a class suggested for buttons
in wnicnine mold is nist coverea tightly with fine thread or floss, over which
.ootnl" ae"orative thrLatl cover is aAaeA. Many crochet buttons have double
covers of this kintl, as do wheels.
As will be noted, One outstanding characteristic of thread buttons is the
,otooot of handwork involved. Hand methods may also be used to apply
woven fabrics to a mold. usually the method consists of nothing more
.'"trpii."i"a tnuo cotttog cover from a piece of fabric and sewing lt over the
"