Buttons are one of the favorite accessories for scrapbookers, competing only with floral motifs. Buttons will help to decorate and diversify work in any style, thanks to the abundance of their designs. Moreover, they are generally available, you do not need to make special orders in online stores or purposefully go to scrap clubs for them, they are easy to buy at the nearest sewing or hardware department. Probably, there is not a single craftswoman in whose house there would not be at least three buttons.

The materials from which buttons are made are very diverse: plastic, metal, mother of pearl and pieces of shells, glass, bone and horn, wood, leather, fabric, porcelain and faience, rubber and even precious stones! We can say an arsenal for all occasions: plastic plain circles of pastel shades look very touching on works dedicated to babies; simple wooden buttons are suitable for eco-style works; metal clasps with embossed and carved “aged copper” colour are requested in vintage projects; delicate mother-of-pearl buttons will decorate the work in the shabby chic style; brutal denim buttons-rivets emphasise the masculinity of postcards for men.

Let’s figure out how to adapt the buttons for the benefit of scrap!

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Clasp for the album or notebook

The main purpose of a button is to be a fastener and this can be used for scrapbooking. A beautiful button will help you to fasten a tight photo album and will not allow it to open without your permission.

Buttons and loops can reliably hide “secrets” on the pages: hold in place the valve, so you can see a photo or a magazine only when open it; or maybe a button will fix the pop-up. The loop button will be a beautiful closure for the entire scrapbook. You can sew a strap with a buttonhole or use ready-made parts, such as cuffs from a shirt or blouse, a belt of jeans or trousers.

An easier way to use a button as a fastener is a button & string tie – button and lace fastening. Two small decorative buttons are fastened close to each other: one on the base, the other on the flap, under one of them a lace is fixed, which wraps around the fasteners of both buttons when it is closed.

Postcards with buttons

Buttons are the easiest and most effective way to decorate a postcard – just attach a few small decorative buttons to create interesting accents. The buttons may be all the same or they may differ in size and colour; they can be grouped in a bunch in one place and draw the viewer’s attention exactly to the corner where they sat, or scatter across the page, forming the direction of the gaze. Round buttons look great on background paper with polka dots or rings.

At Christmas cards buttons can even become the centerpiece of a decoration. An elegant Christmas tree made from buttons looks original, very fresh and aesthetically beautiful. Depending on your imagination, the buttons can represent decoration on the tree or simply fold into fancy winter patterns. If you use mother-of-pearl and shiny buttons, the card will look especially festive and shimmers with all the colours of the rainbow.

Photo frame made of buttons

Button photo frames are just perfect! It is enough to lay out the buttons around the photo and the page already looks well. Buttons of different colours but of the same type look spectacular. You can also try another option – buttons of different sizes, shapes and textures, but of the same shade. Moreover, it is not necessary to lay out an even rectangle: you can get by with an angle (two rows of buttons, perpendicular to each other) or make a border (just a row of buttons).

Many small decorative buttons are required for large photos, but a small photo can be inserted into a frame even from one button! The large, rimmed button is ideal for small, round photographs.

A curly frame made of buttons looks even more interesting. For example, a regular portrait photo can be turned into a declaration of love – a heart-shaped frame protruding from the edges of the photo will not only brighten the work, but also focus on the main character of the page. And at the same time, buttons hide unwanted elements in the background and mask defects in photos.

And if you really like the button decor, then you can cover the entire page with buttons. The page will immediately become very heavy, but so textured! Buttons also can be supplemented with eyelets, braids and beads of suitable shades. You can even lay out the entire background from the buttons, without gaps and extraneous inclusions.

Write words with buttons

Large round buttons will perfectly replace or decorate the letters “O” and zeros in any name. Small decorative buttons are useful for highlighting the round parts in the letters B, g, a, d, P, Q, R, don’t forget about the numbers: 6, 8 and 9. The tiny buttons will serve as dots for i and j or punctuation marks.

With the help of buttons, you can make the cute signatures in the children’s album. For example, the inscription “Cute as button” with a button instead of “O” looks beautiful, original and funny.

Thematic decor

Today, you can find more than just round buttons in stores. The variety of shapes is amazing. While in ordinary sewing salons, standard geometric shapes are usually presented – triangular, square, heart-shaped buttons: in special craft stores you can find buttons in the form of flowers, leaves, emoticons, donuts, machines and much more. Explore the catalogue of craft buttons  at CraftOnline – one glance at this variety is already inspiring to create some interesting projects.

Small decorative buttons will perfectly complement the page of an album about a wedding or a country trip. It is enough just to attach a few relevant buttons to the page.

Buttons are a unique material for crafts. It can be used in various ways, both for decorating ready-made products and for creating new trinkets and useful gizmos. Remember that a beautiful project is always created from small details!