Button, button, who's got the button?

Humans must be part magpie, because there is something irresistibly attractive about buttons. Tiny, shiny, brightly colored; there's nothing better than running your fingers through a big bucket of buttons (remember the button tin your grandmother had?). But what do you do with all of them? Well, Stephanie Bourgeois gives you 50 different ideas in A Passion for Buttons! The projects are all basically jewelry: necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and hair clips. Some of these projects are easy enough that my 5-year-old can do them (with a little parental assistance at the finish), whereas others require more time and manual dexterity. But the nice thing about them (and about buttons in general, I guess), is that the possibilities are endless. A different set of colors or textures, and you have a whole different product. And if you start off with buttons that are already little works of art in themselves (as opposed to whatever fell off your cuff last week), then the pieces you make can be quite impressive. The instructions are simple, with nice diagrams that demonstrate how to thread your string/tiger tail/wire through the button holes, a detailed list of all the tools and supplies that you will need, and nice color photos to help inspire you. So whether you're trying to dress up an outfit, recycle some beloved buttons, or find a way to occupy your kids on some rainy day, the projects in this book should fit the bill.