A-Z Blog Challenge: B is for Buttons

Recently one of those 'Like if you know what this is' memes was going round Facebook and the picture we were supposed to comment on was one of these.










Apparently whoever put the meme together was under the impression that this - a button box or spare button collection - was incredibly old-fashioned and something that nobody in the twenty first century would have. I doubt if they are under that illusion any more because the comments exploded with people of all ages sharing that they still have collections of spare buttons. And why wouldn't they?

The last couple of pairs of pants I bought for myself and those I bought recently for Pisces - he's a man who prefers not to shop for himself - as well as shirts bought for both of us came with spare buttons and thread in natty little packets and they have to go somewhere, don't they? Sometimes you can find a place on the garment where they can be sewn in case they're needed at some time in the future but more often than not they need a temporary home. Add in some one who sews and knits - that would be me - and a lot of spare buttons accumulate. So da-da we have a button box/collection.

Granted some of the buttons in my button box have been there a long time - you need four buttons and can only buy them in a pack of six or you need eight and have to buy two packs of six - and they build up over the years but what else am I supposed to do with the excess. I could toss them but that's wasteful and besides the time may well come when I need to replace one of the originals or for that matter have find one to replace a stray that's gone missing and I'd rather go to my button collection than have to buy a complete new set. Truth be told I haven't actually bought a replacement button in more years than I care to remember.

So meme maker, button collections are not old fashioned. They are simply good sense.