When examining the whole, it is not without detection of its parts.  The entirety is of course chief in importance, but the particulars can create something extraordinanary or render it useless, or worse frightful and ghastly. Perhaps this is an exaggeration of sorts, but it is done to emphasize the essence of my objective.  The aspects are primary in importance.

Impeccable stitching and tailoring transform an outfit from the entirely mediocre to the exceptional.  Pattern and fabric can be stunning or sour on the eye.  Bits and bobs can be fanciful or unimaginative.

Such is the case with buttons. Simply google ‘rare buttons’ as opposed to simply ‘buttons’ and the polarity will be immediately obvious. The craftsmanship and creative vision on the bygone variety is evidence in itself.

A recommendation to leave you with is this: Visit your boutique buttons shops (not the mass variety).  Some I have visited and can confidently endorse include Tender Buttons, M & J Trimming NYC and LouLou Buttons in NYC and the Button Store in LA.  Online retailers like Etsy can also be charming, but you will have to search and be discerning with your eye. I enjoy removing the common plastic variety from my jackets and things and replacing them with the exotic. You can also mix and match on one garment. Doing so, creates an irreverance on a piece and also makes it sincerely yours.

“The main goal in my life is to make extraordinary things out of the ordinary.“

Attribution to Architectural Digest