Page 46 - February1999

44 NAINONAN, B{.]IITON B{JN,N,ETN February 1999

BUTTON BITS

By Ellaraine Lockie

I Jean Young in California has two of the buttons that her great grandfather,
Timothy Henry Sadler, wore when he immigrated here from England
shortly after 1838. The buttons are made from English four-pence pieces
and were worn on his vest. This was a way to bring more money out of
England, another unusual use ofbuttons.

I Here's another. The Fall issue of the Italian magazine, Colors,adverlises
sets of plastic buttons with 16 shapes to aid blind people when they dress.
Each button shape represents a different color, thereby enabling blind
people to identify colors through shapes. They are sold at the Royal
National Institute for the Blind in London.

I Diane Jahnke from Texas sent in a reference to celluloid buttons that she
found in the book, Plastic: The Making of a Synthetic Century by Stephen
Fenichell. It mentions an incident published in Scientific American about a
young woman who sat down in front of a roaring fire and found her
celluloid dress buttons in flames, forcing her to choose between her
modesty and her life. She chose the latter. We should all be cautious about
showing off our celluloid buttons on clothes or as jewelry when we cook
or tend the fireplace. Thanks for initiating this safety tip, Diane.

I Diane also found a clever reference to buttons in Through the Looking
Glass by Lewis Carroll in the song titled, "A Sitting on a Gate" by the
White Knight in Chapter VIII. I'll leave you to look it up.

I ttre fourth historical reason for men's cuff buttons in our continuing list is
that the buttons helped men adjust their clothes to suit the climate; the
sleeves could be drawn over their hands in the cold or tumed back to the
wrists and buttoned in the heat.

Please keep sending button-related anecdotes to me at 627 Templeton Ct.,
Sunnl,vale, CA 94087. Thank 1tou.