6 Different Antique China Calico Buttons inc Stars…Blue….7/16" - $35 - (San Diego, CA)

6 Different Antique China Calico Buttons…Blue Includes Stars…always a favorite :) 7/16" Very good condition. __________________ Calicos were introduced in the 1840's. Read about their history here from Bead & Button magazine....The patterns on calico china buttons were not intended to match calico textiles, but to complement them. These brightly colored fabrics printed with repeat patterns of small floral or geometric shapes were the latest thing in the mid-1800s. Originally, calico fabrics had been imported from and named for Calicut, a port on the Malabar Coast of India. However, by the mid-1800s, calico fabrics were being milled in England, France, and the United States. China buttons were humble and utilitarian but they were more colorful, certainly, than the small metal, pearl, and bone buttons commonly used on everyday clothing of the Victorian era. They became universal during the middle and late 1800s, closing men’s shirts as well as women’s blouses, dresses, and children’s clothing. “Chinas” sold for as little as 2 cents per dozen for undecorated styles, and 3 cents per dozen for decorated styles. The buttons were hand-sewn onto cards that could be cut to give the purchaser the number of buttons needed. The popularity of the product spawned factories in the United States, Germany, and France, and each manufacturer attempted to outdo the others in innovation and style. The Frenchman Jean-Felix Bapterosses aggressively dominated the industry. In 1844, he substantially increased production with a machine that formed 500 buttons at a time. His operation quickly outgrew a small factory in Paris, necessitating relocation to Briare, a small town to the south. Ever an innovator, Bapterosses developed lustered buttons and colored clay buttons. By 1849, his factory was producing 1,400,000 buttons per day. He employed 150 people in the factory and 400 women outside the factory to sew the buttons onto cards, which were printed on-site. More employees r…

Posted in San Diego, CA, Antiques
From ebay.com - 1 month ago