A Passion for Sleeve Buttons

Ever since I learned about 18th century sleeve buttons, I have been working to add them to what I offer as a sutler. But first, I had to do a lot of research and be sure I had the knowledge base to reproduce them accurately. 

Then, after I'd understood what they were, how they were used, and how they should look in a garment, I tried my hand at creating them. 

They are fun to make and not difficult.

I enjoyed myself so much, I may have gotten a bit carried away - I have enough buttons in stock to accommodate the cuffs of many, many chemises, shifts, and trade shirts!

For years I'd been putting horn or bone buttons on the sleeves on my men's trade shirts. But the more I learned about sleeve buttons and the dates they were used, I began wondering, "Surely there were sleeve buttons used on these shirts."

But I could NOT find documentation. So of course, I asked Leslie. Rarely do I stump her with a historical accuracy question, but she did not know for sure if they'd been used. (She felt it was logical, but she knew I wanted documentation.)

"I'll ask Ward," she said.

Ward? Ward Oles?! She was going to ask him?? Ward is a very big name in the living history field; she was going straight to the top to get the answer to my question!

Leslie saw no problem with that - they are friends and he even came out from New England as a guest speaker to Kalamazoo a few years ago. (Sometimes I forget that she herself is also a very big name in the living history field, too. To me, she's just my sister.)

She contacted him and, of course, Ward could answer my question.

His response is in the box and then Leslie comments under it in her email to me.

Here are the Four Kings as painted by John Verelst in 1710.

And the sleeve buttons that Ward references. Bingo! I've now got the documentation needed to use them on my trade shirts. (Thanks Leslie, and thanks, Ward!)

I started right in on those trade shirt cuffs.

My first attempt. It worked and the sleeve buttons fit into the buttonholes but I felt the hole was too far away from the edge of the sleeve.

They need to be right at the edge of the cuff like these are in this photo. 

I tried again on a second shirt.

Bingo! Just how they should look! 

By the third shirt, I felt comfortable - I knew where the placement of the buttonhole should go to ensure the sleeve buttons were not too far apart when worn. (That would cause the fabric between them to bunch.)

Perfect! Now that I have got historical documentation, know how to reproduce an accurate set, and have figured out how to sew the cuffs so the sleeve buttons fit correctly, all future trade shirts that I sew will come with a set of sleeve buttons.

Hmmm... perhaps I should buy some more buttons...