DIY Button Topiary
Vintage buttons are such a fun find when you’re on the secondhand hunt. Back when resourceful women would keep every last button from an old garment, button collections flourished. Whenever I can find a glass jar or ziplock bag full of these treasures for a decent price, I add them to my grandma’s collection I inherited. I enjoy just looking at them, all divided by color in glass jars, and am excited whenever I can use them for a project. Today’s Thrifty Chicks Challenge inspired this DIY Button Topiary that is oh-so-easy to craft!
Today is the 2nd Wednesday of the month which means it’s time for another Thrifty Chicks Challenge! Today’s inspiration is buttons and I can’t wait to see what my creative friends came up with! We’re welcoming 2 new Thrifty Chicks to our challenges this month! Make sure to give a warm welcome to Linda of Itsy Bits and Pieces and Sheila of Audrey Would Vintage! We’re hoping these monthly challenges will become their favorite days of the month, like it is to the rest of us!
Get out your button stash and get creative!
Since I had picked up a couple topiary forms for cheap at a church sale, I decided my buttons would get in the gardening mood. I’ve always loved the symmetry and balance of topiaries, and this year they’re really my favorite botanical look. I styled some store bought mini’s into a centerpiece recently on a “Repurposed Wood Lath Runner”. I thought it would be fun to spread the topiary love into some other rooms for spring and try a different version. I think you’re going to want to make some of these for yourself when you see how easy and cute they are!
DIY Button Topiary
Grab your button stash and a topiary form and heat up your glue gun; that’s basically all you need, besides a little moss at the end!
Hot Glue Buttons to Topiary Form
Hot glue the buttons one by one all around the topiary form sphere. They should be laying flat next to each other, as close as you can get. Don’t worry that there’s a little green poking through. Unless you want your final version to be totally white or some other color. Then you would maybe want to paint your sphere before you start glueing. I was good with the green.
Add a Second Layer of Buttons to the Topiary Form
Once your first layer of buttons is done, begin adding another layer on top. Glue the second layer on the spaces left by the first layer. Your sphere will be getting heavy with all the buttons! You will have glue strings all over the place, but don’t worry…you can eliminate those later:)
Now you’re going to ask, “How many buttons will I need?” Oh boy. Remember those old baby and wedding shower games when you had to guess the number of something inside a container? I was always horrible at that guesstimate. I used a couple inches of buttons from my ball jar…how’s that for exact?
Add Lichen or Moss to your DIY Button Topiary
There were still some little green spots peeking out between the buttons; I decided to add an organic touch with some lichen tufts. Glue them here and there to add a different texture to your button sphere.
Lastly, Melt Your Glue Strings
The (almost) last step of any hot glue project is to get rid of those pesky strings. Grab your hair dryer and melt away any strings that are showing. You’ll feel so much better about your project after you’ve done this step!
Place Your DIY Button Topiary in a Container
I decided my Button Topiary would look fresh in a vintage milkglass flower pot. I pinned some green sheet moss to the bottom. Metal U-pins work perfectly for this step. To give my button topiary a little May Day and Easter flourish, I ripped a length of fabric and tied a bow to the stem. I tucked an old terrarium bunny into the moss also.
How cute is that? I love easy little craft projects like this where I can enjoy a collection in a whole new way. I think a collection of these DIY button topiaries with different forms would be a wonderful centerpiece for a bridal or baby shower, or even for Easter or Mother’s Day. And you could get a totally different look with different colored buttons, too.
Here are some other projects where I used by button stash:
“How to Easily Fix an Old Patchwork Quilt”
“Sunflower Button Pillow How-To”
Hope you enjoyed this DIY Button Topiary! Now let’s see what the rest of my creative, Thrifty Chicks friends came up with for this button challenge!
- “Button Easter Egg”, Little Vintage Cottage
- “Upcycling Thrifted Buttons Into Stylish Napkin Rings”, Audrey Would Vintage
- Me;)
- “How to Display and Sell Vintage & Antique Buttons + Free Printables”, AdirondackGirl@Heart
- Fun DIY Button Card Projects, Itsy Bits and Pieces
- “Button Flowers Pillow Makeover”, Color Me Thrifty (formerly knows as Thrifty Rebel Vintage)
Sharing at:
Wall to Wall DIY Wednesday
Celebrate Your Style
SUCH an adorable idea, Lora! I love your creativity!
Thanks, Julie!
Pretty buttons present endless possibilities, don’t they? I love your topiaries! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!
Yes, buttons are a wonderful crafting staple!
I have a jar of buttons I received as a sweet gift from my youngest brother when he was a tween and I cherish that jar of buttons because we lost him too young. I love your pretty button topiary, Lora! What makes yours unique is adorning it with moss and the pretty white container embellished for Easter. You got me thinking about my cherished jar of buttons. Instead of hiding them away in my sewing cabinet, maybe they should be used in some way, like adorning a picture frame with a photo of him. Thank you for the inspiration, Lora! xo
Those buttons are extra special, Marie! You should definitely have them out somewhere to remember your precious brother.
Your topiary is lovely Lora! Such a great way to repurpose buttons. Love that sweet little bunny too.
Thanks, Tuula! I could totally see you doing this with your favorite colors and your huge button stash!
This is just Lovely! Thanks for the hair dryer tip. i do not often use hot glue but I will do more now that I know that trick!
Hot glue is so handy, but the burned fingers are not fun; happens every time:( Glad you learned a new trick, Molly Jo!
Great project, Lora–perfect for spring decorating. Love your darling bunny and thanks for the hair dryer tip for getting rid of stray hot glue strands 🙂
Glad you learned a new tip for your already-full arsenal, Diana!
What a great idea, Lora! I love the idea of table centrepieces for a wedding, bridal shower, etc. And you know what, I never knew the blow dryer trick to melt the stings of glue. Thank you for sharing that!
Thanks, Sheila! Glad you got some ideas and learned a new trick!
This is such a fun and charming project, Lora…perfect for spring decor, and I love your idea for party or shower centerpieces!
They’d be so pretty for a spring bridal shower. Glad you enjoyed them, Linda!
Its adorable Lora! I always sucked at those guessing games too… I guess 657…nope its 25! ?
Tania
L.O.L., Tania!