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COMMUNITY
GILBERT SUN NEWS | OCTOBER 31, 2021
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Button collections on display at HD SOUTH BY SRIANTHI PERERA GSN Contributor
B
uttons become valuable collector’s items when they are attached to history or a family
story. And that history and those stories are on display as the Arizona State Button Society presents a collection of antique/vintage buttons at HD South, Home of the Gilbert Historical Museum, through Nov. 19. The exhibit features a variety, such as Victorian jewel fabric and military buttons. Members will trade or sell antique buttons in the museum courtyard from 1-3 p.m. Nov. 6. “They are mini works of art, in some cases they have been passed down and treasured by other family members,” said Michele Fox, society president, of Chandler. “There are many fascinating stories about buttons and button history, there are always new things to learn about because they were made from so many different materials and used on all clothing items before there were zippers and Velcro,” she added. The state society has five active button collecting umbrella clubs. Total membership currently numbers around 60. Dues are $10 per year for adults and $2 for youth and members receive a thriceyearly newsletter with articles, photos, project topics and historical research. Often, people inherit collections from family members or stumble on the hobby. Vicky Mayhall, president of the East Valley’s Saguaro Club, was an antiques dealer who stumbled on the hobby. “I would sell to stand-alone shops once in a while…and I became friends
State Button Society,” she said. Fox inherited her collection from her mother in Indiana, who, in turn, inherited the collection from her mother. The buttons are from the 1920s and 30s, and the collection numbers about 6,000. Her button buying is dictated by upcoming competitions. A large part of the hobby is preparing and presenting trays at comThrough Nov. 19, the Arizona State Button Society is exhibiting two petitions. showcases of vintage buttons belonging to members. Button trays include For 2022, military, Western and Victorian themes. (Courtesy of HD South) she’s working on seven comwith a woman who one day asked me to petition trays, including one themed look for buttons and I thought she was on copper buttons. Each tray holds 25 crazy,” said Mayhall. “I started finding buttons; hence she’s looking for several them, and the more I handled them, more. the more I realized how connected they “Even if you take a couple of types of were to so many things.” buttons and decide that they are your “I found myself keeping certain beau- favorites and you want to collect them, tiful types for myself and I found out there are so many things to learn about through a book that there were button different materials, eras, times and who collectors and that they competed with made them,” she said. “Material and histhese buttons and they categorized tory interact together.” buttons so I became a National Button Mayhall has a “mind-boggling” Society member and learned about number of buttons. my buttons and found the Arizona “Because I had a background in
antiques, I just fell in love with the idea of a miniature type of antique and, I thought, this will be small and won’t take up much room,” she said. “They’re everywhere and it’s easy to amass a lot of them if you find someone’s old button box from their great-grandmother. Then, all of a sudden, you have hundreds and hundreds of buttons in a small container. It can start to take over, depending on how many you have.” After the industrial revolution, buttons stopped being made by hand and were made by machine. Mayhall has buttons made in the 1400s through to ones sold at a sewing store in the East Valley. It’s also hard to value a collection because buttons are subjective, collectors said. A good button costs $20, and the average antique button is priced between $20 to $100. “There are some that are rare that are always going to be big money, but it’s like anything – everything is only worth what someone is willing to pay and if someone wants something bad enough they may pay a lot or overpay for a button,” Mayhall said. The Saguaro Club meets monthly in Mesa and is seeking more members. “We would hope for others that are interested and would like to find out what the fascination with buttons is,” Mayhall said. “Everyone’s always invited to come and sit in on a meeting and bring what they have…and we’ll tell them about them.” Details: hdsouth.org. Arizona State Button Society is on Facebook at facebook.com/ArizonaStateButtonSociety. Write to the group at arizonastatebuttonsoc@gmail.com.”
