Last Edit January 10, 1997
This was done for fun - and it is not finished. If you have a fact or a reference - send it to me - dewhite@best.com.
Buttons have been known to exist as far back as the Bronze age when they were worn as ornamentation. They were used to decorate belts and other metal objects. Primitive man used thorn and sinew to hold clothing together. Bone stick pins were also used. With the introduction of metals came metal pins.
The Eqyptians used cloth ties and broaches or buckles to hold their clothes together.
The Greeks and Romans are thought to have worn buttons to actually fasten clothes.
The 13th century saw form-fitting clothes come into vogue and buttons became necessary as fasteners.
For a long time buttons were a status symbol and men competed to see who could have the best, the largest or the most intricate buttons. They were used by the nobility and made of silver and gold. Buttons were made with exquisite paintings on them. They were carved, inlaid, stamped and covered. Craftsmen were hired just to make buttons.
Francis I (1494-1547) had 13,600 gold buttons on a single costume.
1700's - metal buttons were used and button covering was created. Metal threads were wound about a button in intricate patterns. Miniature scenes were painted on ivory or glass buttons. Some buttons were engraved and inlaid with silver.
The French court was notorious for button displays. Louis XIV (1638-1715) had silver-covered bone buttons on the uniforms of his soldiers.
1750 - Caspar Wistar, a German immigrant, made brass buttons in Philadelphia.
Louis XVI (1754-1793) had courtiers who used buttons to outdo each other.
1775 - metal buttons worn on the revolutionary war uniforms were actually imported from France.
1812 - war blockage led to American industry - Aaron Benedict, Waterbury, CT, bought every brass pot and pan he could get and rolled buttons in his own mill.
Covered buttons were introduced in America by S. H. Williston, Easthampton, MA.
1840's - hard rubber buttons were tried but they didn't work very well.
Celluloid, a synthetic, was developed to replace ivory .
Regency novels often refer to "tapes" used to hold young ladies dresses together at the same time young men are often disparaged because they had "buttons the size of dinner plates" on their jackets and waistcoats.
Buttons were so expensive that buttons would be rescued from old garments and used on new garments. Typical fancy buttons today might cost $2.50 - $15.00 - making it still wise to save buttons.
Covered buttons remain available today - a piece of fabric can be tucked around the "teeth" of the back and the metal button snaps together. They allow sewers to make buttons that match the fabric they are using.
There are also button "covers": that can be put over plain buttons to "dress up" a garment.
The most unique buttons of the 20th century have to be the Velcro buttons, used when age make fingers useless or when ripping a garment off quickly without tearing it is desired.
Knitting and crochet are thought to have begun when primitive man sought to make webs out of roots and tendrils.
Crossed knitting examples data back to Peru (Mazca culture) about 100BC-700AD. Other examples of early work: 200AD - Dura-European site - Euphrates River. Eqyptian burials (4th and 5th century) Saudia Arabia (4th century), Europe (5th century)
Knitting became a craft in Scotland in the 14th and 15th centuries.
In the Middle Ages, England raised sheep and exported the wool to Flanders. Woven cloth was then brought back to England.
1589 - machine to knit stockings in Notingham developed by a English cleryman William Lee (1550-1610) - this machine remained unchanged for 250 years.
1758 - Ribbing device was added.
1775 - Warp knitting was introduced
19th century - circular knitting machine developed to knit underclothes.
During the Englich-French Nepoleanic wars, ladies got together to knit socks and mittens for the soldiers. This practice continued through World War I and World War II. They also knitted garments for the poor of the parish, usually in drab colors of grey and beige, the neutral colors. Color was considered a status symbol. Hence the term "colorless" as a disparaging remark.
I haven't found a whole lot about this. Inputs are welcome.
Crocheting was known as "Nun's" work in the Middle Ages since Nuns created clothing for the poor during this time using knitting and crochet. During the Renaissance, both peasant women and Ladies had begun to crochet. Crochet lace began in Ireland about 1820.
Crocheting is defined as single-needle knitting. In America, older women crochet baby booties and bonnets. Today it is a well-developed craft from fine-thread lace-like garments and trim to heavy-weight afghans.
Zippers are used to fasten clothing when buttons don't seem appropriate. Zippers give a tighter seal against cold for example and are easier to sit on when used in upholstery.
Greetings Page A little bit about me in a lighter vein. Yes, I am still a "Trekkie"! But, I like romance novels too.
Short stories (humorous, and not) and various essays [ A Growing List ] Why working mothers run away from home and other stories.
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