Rainbow Mermaid Sewing Buttons

These Handmade Rainbow Mermaid Sewing Buttons have been very popular in my shop.  These come in different sizes and if you need a specific size you can contact me and I can make the size you need.

Handmade Rainbow Mermaid Sewing Buttons

Fire Truck Sewing Buttons.

Fire Truck Sewing Buttons

Handmade Real Birch Bark Sewing Buttons.

Birch Bark Buttons

These are some of my handmade buttons made with real birch bark collected from my own property.

These are made with real birch bark.  I use bark collected from naturally fallen trees so that no damage is done to trees in the making of these buttons.

These add a real rustic touch to your handmade items.  These particular buttons are packaged so that they are ready for gift giving. 

I will also be listing buttons without the packaging that can be used in your projects as well.  I'm hoping to be adding more buttons made with natural items.  I particularly love how these have turned out.  If you have any suggestions for images or items you'd like to see turned into buttons I'd love to hear from you.

Its All About the Roosters

White Rooster Buttons

Today my buttons focus on roosters.  Roosters are very popular in country and primitive decor.  I have an assortment of rooster buttons in my Etsy shop Buttons By Robin  Here are pictures of a couple of my latest addition.  As always, my buttons can be made in pretty much any size that you need for your projects.  I'm always happy to work with you to get something perfect for your needs.

Black Rooster Buttons

Back and Better than Ever!

Green Owl Sewing Buttons.

It's been a really long time since my last post.  At that time I was having problems with the materials I was using to make my buttons.  I haven't been able to resolve the issue with that type of materials but have found something that is even better.  It's been a very long haul but I've been using the new materials for quite a while now and am very pleased with how it has worked out.  I guess it just goes to show if there is a will there is a way.  I'm still selling on Etsy and while things have slowed down there I'm happy to be selling.  I've been trying to figure out ways to get more viewers to my shop and that hasn't been all that successful but Ill keep on keeping on and see how it goes.  For now I'm reintroducing some of my earlier images.  I'm also focusing on my custom buttons.  I can pretty much put any image on a button and can do that at a reasonable cost and generally it only takes a week or two.    I'll try to come back here and keep up my blog going forward.  Lets see how this goes.   Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think of my buttons.  I'd also love to know if there are buttons out that you simply can't find and I'll see what I can do to add them to my shop.

Reinventing Myself

So I find myself in a bit of a business dilemma.  It turns out the manufacturer of the material I use for my buttons has gone out of business.  I found out about this when I got a batch of the product from my current supplier and had issues with the quality.  She, in turn, contacted her supplier and has found out that manufacturer went out of business and this is the first batch from the new supplier.  It seems the new manufacturer is having a quality problem.  This seems to be the only supplier around.  A number of companies make the product but it seems the base product all comes from this same supplier.   I contacted another company and they told me the same story.  The base product is having quality control problems so they are no longer offering the product either.  I'm on the search for a replacement but at the same time am wondering if this is an opportunity in disguise.  I've been wanting to branch off into other products and even just other types of buttons.  I've dabbled in ceramic and glass and wood but because the resin buttons are so popular it's been a challenge having the time to explore those other options.

On the bright side I do have quite a large stock of product that I can adapt and use to make my buttons so luckily it's not an overnight thing.  I do have some time to plan a different approach.

I'm having a bit of a challenge in deciding on a focus.  I think I'm going to start on wooden buttons and see where that takes me.  They do take a lot of time and I'm still developing designs and improving production so I'm not sure how this will go.  All of my other types of buttons are very labour intensive.  One part of me just wants to pack it all in but another part wants to figure this out.  I'll try to keep my blog updated as I move through this process.  Let's see where it takes me.  Wish me luck!

Sleeping Beauty Sweater

My customer took the time to send me a picture of the adorable sweater she made with the sleeping beauty buttons.  I love that she took the time to do that.  My customers are so very talented.  I love how this turned out.

Primitive Sheep Handmade Sewing Buttons

Primitive sheep sewing buttons.  These are some of my primitive style buttons. These images are from a painting pattern by Betty Bowers.  I painted the design and then added the image to the buttons.  These are perfect for anyone that loves prim.

The prim angel and the prim sheep and pears are often something used in primitive design.  I just love how these turned out.

Dinosaur Sewing Buttons

Dinosaur Sewing Buttons

Dinosaur Sewing Buttons  I was asked by one of my customers to customize the colours of the dinosaur buttons.  She has purchased some yellow and brown yarn so has asked for the buttons to match.

One of the many wonderful things about handmade buttons is that you can have them customized to the size, quantity and even colour that you would like.  How great is that.  If you like you can even add a name or some text.  If you're going to go to all the trouble to sew, knit or crochet something special you might as well go that extra mile and embellish them with handmade buttons that are the perfect match to your handmade creation!

Black Panther Sewing Buttons

Black Panther Shank Sewing Buttons

Black panther shank sewing buttons.

One of my customers asked me to create some panther buttons for them.  This is what I came up with.  I love the look of the majestic cat.  These are shank buttons.  I didn't want to put holes through the cat's face so opted for a metal shank instead.

Dragon Eye Sewing Buttons

Dragon Eye Shank Sewing ButtonsDragon eye shank sewing buttons.

Dragon eye shank sewing buttons.  My dragon eye sewing buttons are now back in stock in my other Etsy shop www.onthedarkerside.com.  This is the Etsy shop where I have buttons which are a bit more weird or unusual.  These are quite popular.  Many people use these on those really great dragon scarves.  These are 3/4" or 20 mm round and are approximately the the size a real eye would be.  Well since dragons aren't real I'm saying they are the size I think dragon eyes should be.

I've been wondering if I should put these buttons in my other Etsy shop www.buttonsbyrobin.com but they really are a very different feel than my other style of buttons which are more on the "cute" side.  I think for now I'll keep them separate.  I'll have to give it some thought though.

Chickadee Sewing Buttons

Chickadee Sewing Buttons

Chickadee sewing buttons  These are sewing buttons with an image of a chickadee I painted.  I used a pattern by Sheila Landry and painted the design based on her pattern and transferred the image to my buttons.  I'll be listing a wooden chickadee ornament in this design in my other shop tomorrow www.timesnotforgotten.com It's drying now.  I can't wait to see the finished item.  I'm very much enjoying painting and using my scroll saw again after a bit of a break.  I really love the smell of wood and love working in my workshop.

Primitive Sheep and Willow Tree Sewing Buttons

Primitive sheep and Willow Tree Handmade Buttons  

These are some of my primitive style buttons.  These have a painted image on them.  I painted the design from a painting pattern created by Marie's Country Crafts and then transferred the painted image to my buttons.  These are quite adorable and look different than buttons made with computer graphics.  They have a very naive quality to them since they are a painted image.  Willow trees and sheep are very popular in primitive creations.  I think these would look adorable on a penny rug.  

Here is a picture of the design painted on a gourd.

You can find it here:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/235048964/primitive-sheep-hand-painted-gourd?ref=shop_home_active_1  I've started to get back into painting a bit.  It's taking me some time to get back to the skill level I had years ago but I do enjoy it.  This is a gourd I actually grew in my own garden several years ago from seed.  I've planted several varieties this year at my cabin and I'm really looking forward to seeing how they turn out.  They take months to dry but I do have some left from previous years so hopefully I'll have a new supply when I've used what I currently have.  If things work out I may decide to sell some of the unpainted gourds.  I have so many ideas!  

Dragon Sewing Buttons

Green Dragon Sewing Buttons

Green Dragon Sewing Buttons  I had a customer recently ask for some more "realistic" dragon buttons.  Well here they are.  since dragons aren't real I'm not sure how realistic they are but they look "real" to my imagination :)

It's Been a While

Pretty Pink Butterfly buttons

It's been a while since I've posted.  I've been spending a lot of time at my cabin this summer.  There is lots to do but I don't have Internet there (other than my phone which has terrible reception in the country) so haven't really posted.  In fact I've neglected my button making terribly.  I must say I've been enjoying the quiet time at the cabin though but now I think I need to find some sort of balance between work, craft and relaxation.  I'm getting back to my primitive painting a bit and hope to get back to working with wood as well but since the cabin is off grid I have to fire up the generator to run any electric power tools.  I'm in the process of exploring battery operated tools so that I can be more spontaneous in what I do.  We'll see how that goes :)

For now here are some pretty butterfly buttons inspired by the butterflies I see at the cabin.  These are fantasy butterflies as the actual butterflies I see look nothing like this.  These are still pretty and pink.  Who doesn't like pretty pink butterflies :)

How Branch Buttons are Born.

The making of  branch buttons.

Last Custom Orders for Christmas

I'm getting quite excited that I'm almost to the point where I have the last of my custom orders for my buttons ready to be shipped out.  Two more orders to finish up this weekend and then whew!!!  I do have other custom orders on my list but these aren't Christmas orders so I have a bit of time.  As soon as I get these last buttons finished and ready to dry I'm going to work on a few primitive wooden items for my other website.  I'm looking forward to that for sure!

Handmade Reclaimed Wooden Cedar Fence Post Cabin Sign

I painted this piece of reclaimed wood with the word "CABIN".  I'm going to hang it at my cabin in the woods.

The wood is naturally aged reclaimed cedar fencepost.  The top has a slight curve on it.  The post was made by taking the tree and taking a slice off the side.  The back is flat and, as I said previously, the top side of the sign is curved out like the side of the tree from which it comes.  This wood has been outside for years and is greyed with age.  You can see how it is naturally worn.  Before painting I did sand the top of the wood to remove some of the roughness.  Once I painted the word "CABIN" on the top I sealed the wood with a water based sealer to protect the paint and the wood from further deterioration.  I plan to make many more of these signs.  The next time I go to the cabin I hope to salvage more of this wood so that during the winter when I can't access the cabin, I have lots of wood to work with.  I love the rustic look of this sign.

More Country Cabin Decorating

As I mentioned a few posts ago we have purchased a cabin in the country. We take possession next Wednesday.  We're busy with all the last minute running around that entails such as signing papers at the lawyers and getting insurance etc.  Lots of work.  I can't wait until we actually get there and I have time to take some time and look around to see what I have actually purchased.

In the mean time I'm trying to keep myself from buying every woodsy cabiny themed item.  It's a small cabin after all and I have to decide what I actually can fit in it.  I couldn't resist these owl salt and pepper shakers I found at Urban Barn today.  They were actually 25% off which I didn't know until I went to pay - that's even better!  I'm trying to keep the décor cabin-like but not too cheesy.  I think these are very cute though and will add a cute little touch.  Now I just have to stop buying items and either make them myself or, at the very least wait until we get there, to see what I actually need LOL!

Cabin Decorating

I found this adorable soap dish at my local Winners store.  I think this will look adorable in my cabin.  It's now inspired me to make some soap dish accessories for my shop.  I won't be making an exact copy - that's not nice :) but it has inspired me to think about making some cabin accessories.  I think this soap dish would need something underneath to catch to drips but I'll think about that in a bit. 

We haven't even taken possession of the cabin yet and I'm not sure where this will go.  I don't even know if there is a ledge on the bathroom sink but I'm sure I'll find somewhere for it to go.  I have some old handles like the one shown here so maybe I'll incorporate them in some way.  I'm not sure what I plan to use for a base.  I'm inclined to use wood but I don't think that would stand up to water and soap so I may have to give that some thought.  Maybe I can use a wooden frame and some mesh for the bottom.  I'll be sure to post my ideas here so you can take a look.  If you have any ideas I'd love to hear them.