The button is the icing on the cake to some garments. Complementing or contrasting perfectly with knitwear or sewn projects. We have started stocking a selection of beautiful buttons from Textile Garden and they can be found in our brand new Button Category online.

We have a selection in metal, shell and bone in patterned and plain colours. The perfect button is waiting for you.

So to celebrate Textile Garden Buttons arriving at Knit With Attitude we have an interview with Maggie the lady behind Textile Garden. Read on to find out everything buttons!

How long has Textile Garden being going?

I’ve been running TextileGarden for over 14 years. I can’t believe it has been that long!

Where do you source your buttons?

My buttons are sourced from mostly small factories within EU. This enables me to, in normal times to visit the places where the buttons are made. I’ve got to know these businesses over the years and they’ve helped me a lot.

Do you collect buttons as well as sell them?

I don’t really collect buttons but I do have some lovely old ones that my Mum gave me.  When something I really like comes in I tend to put some aside for myself as well.

Do you have a favourite material for buttons?

Most of the buttons I like for my own use tend to be fairly simple.  I like quite plain horn, corozo, some metal and good quality shell.  So I suppose natural materials would sum my taste up.

Are you a sewer or a knitter?

I am definitely more of a sewer but I love knitting as well.  Knitting is more portable and I don’t have to keep getting the sewing machine out.  

What is currently on your needles/sewing table?

On my needles now is the Copenhagen Cardigan by Petit Knits and I have almost finished it.   The yarn I’m using is, one strand of a silk mohair and one of a yarn I bought years ago from Sylvie’s yarn company, Polo et Cie.  It is a beautifully soft yarn, a mix of camel and some kind of other wool.  Sylvie’s yarns are quite rustic, not fancy yarn and I like them very much.  A friend (Louise from The Knitting Shed) dyed both yarns a deep burgundy colour for me.  

How do you go about choosing buttons for a knitted/sewing project?

When deciding on what buttons to use I ask my self, do I want the buttons to be a feature or is the garment the star of the show?  The majority of the time I choose something fairly simple and mostly small.  After saying this, I am partial to a bit of sparkle.Customers often ask me to help choose buttons and I find they are very influenced by what size the pattern suggests.  It’s only a suggestion, so it’s good to think about it before making the buttonholes.  

For garments I sew it has to be practical for me.  Button placement is important so there is no gaping.  Is the weight of the button suitable for the fabric etc.

Does a button ever inspire a project?

Am I inspired by a button. Well I have seen a really beautiful button that I’m tempted to order but they are very expensive. It a very pale pinky mauve shell button which is slightly pearlescent and I can see it on a very lightweight knit perhaps worn with jeans to tone it down a bit.

Thanks to Maggie for answering my questions and her great eye for button sourcing. Every outfit now needs a Textile Garden Button!