Buttoned up

I have a tendency to collect buttons. I don't exactly mean to but it happens. I think that I might use them later. That all the buttons on my shirts and jackets are going to mysteriously disappear and that I will need those back ups. But the truth is, they never do. And even when I do lose a button, I never bother to replace them.

I mentioned wanting to do something cool with all these buttons to my grandmother and she gave me a ton of antique buttons.

Score.

These are way better than my leftover Gap and Banana Republic simple black and tortoise. These were big, small, crystal, green ones, flowers, you name it.

I have forgotten along the way where I got this idea – I could have ripped it straight from the pages of Pottery Barn, I have no shame along with no memory. Either way, it's simple and fairly low cost. You could probably replicate something similar with things from your house.

My grandmother also gave me some old frames, but if you're like me, you have frames that for whatever reason don't have glass but you never threw away. (Or that's just me.) If you don't, I see them all the time at flea markets.

I also had a piece of leftover canvas. This could be substituted with any plain fabric (or mostly plain).

I sketched out an 'M.' The easiest way is to print out a large single letter or enlarge it. (I think it was around 165 point font) I used a pencil very lightly then started laying out buttons, making sure to spread out small ones and large ones, keeping colors from touching and spreading out the interesting ones.

And then I hot glued the buttons in place. I planned on going back and stitching them down, but I didn't. I'm lazy.