NCSBS member Debbie Stribling showed this adorable framed tray of black glass buttons with silver luster mounted as Christmas ornaments – what a clever project!
Category Archives: Member News
Preview of Ben Lang Article Coming in the NCSBS Spring Bulletin
Lovers of studio buttons will enjoy a new article in the NCSBS Spring Bulletin written by button collector and NCSBS member Laurie Smyrl.
For the article, Laurie did extensive research and came up with some unseen examples of Ben Lang’s work. Ben Lang was a studio button artist from Lansing, Michigan, who made buttons from 1967 to 1972.
NOTE! Bulletins are mailed twice a year to NCSBS members. If you are not a member, you”ll want to join (join here) and get your bulletin with Laurie’s article and more original articles from button collectors.
Don’t Miss Our Exciting May Show in Greensboro, NC!
May 17-18, 2013 – NCSBS Annual Show
You are cordially invited to the North Carolina Button Society’s 17th Annual Show to be held on Friday, May 17th and Saturday, May 18th from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Location: The Inn at Greensboro (formerly the Holiday Inn at Greensboro Airport) at 6426 Burnt Poplar Road, Greensboro, NC 27409. Mention “North Carolina Button Club” to receive the special show rate of $85/per night. Reservations can be made by calling (336) 668-0421. $2.00 donation at the door each day.
The theme for the 2013 show is “Metal Buttons From Around the World”
Button dealers from around the country will have thousands of buttons for sale! This show is for antique and vintage and modern button aficionados and those who are interested in the artwork and history of these items including their manufacture, design and material makeup. Costume designers, vintage clothing collectors, quilters, sewers, antique and history buffs, re-enactors, beaders, and crafters will also find this show educational, informative and fun!
Dealers this year are:
- Sharon Braund, New York
- Kevin Kinne, Tennessee
- Mary Beers, Maryland
- Paula Woods, North Carolina
- Mary Gaumond, New Jersey
The Show will include:
- A free, Friday evening program “Buttons Through the Ages” by Kevin Kinne
- Educational displays exploring silver buttons from around the world
- Silent auction items and raffle baskets
- Buttons available for purchase throughout the show
- Button Competition Trays (Entry and Tray Slip Form Available Here)
The North Carolina State Button Society (NCSBS) welcomes new members. Regional clubs are the Eastern, Central and Western chapters. The NCSBS was formed to encourage and promote interest in collecting buttons and related items for educational and historical purposes and for personal enjoyment. Our goal is to preserve for future generations all that is beautiful, artistic and historical in buttons, in cooperation with the National Button Society.
For more information, contact Show Chairperson June Chapman: ronjunec@bellsouth.net or 910-791-9024
Welcome to the NCSBS Updated Website!
Welcome to the updated NCSBS website.
Building on the wonderful work of prior webmasters Brian Buresch and Paul Rice, the latest incarnation of our website is designed to encourage member interaction and sharing of information.
We welcome your feedback on what we can do to improve the website and please send us stories, links and ideas for articles and posts. Please send us with your thoughts by clicking on this link.
Winners of the Awards Competition at the 2012 NCSBS Show
Award #1: Foreign Issue
- First Place – Helen Vance
Award #2: Buckles Clasps (creative mounting/ popular vote)
- First Place – Peggie McColloch
- Second Place – Pat Howard
- Third Place -Gillian Bostick
Award #3: Junior Ward (creative mounting) – No Entries
Award #4: Junior Award (creative mounting) – No Entries
Award #5: Pastes/Rhinestones in Assorted Materials
- First Place – Peggie McColloch
- Second Place – Pat Howard
Award #6: Clear & Colored Glass (blue & green) – No Ribbons Awarded
Award #7 – Clear & Colored Glass (5 colors)
- First Place – Judy Worthington
Award #8 – Plaster of Paris
- First Place – Laurie Smyrl
Award # 9 – Birds on a Branch
- First Place – Jean Rivers
- Second Place – Judy Worthington
- Third Place -Joy Childress
Award #10 – Birds of Prey – No Entries
Award #11 – Hands, Fans and Hearts – No Entries
Award #12 – Pick Any Flower
- First Place – Helen Vance
- Second Place – Judy Worthington
- Third Place – Marilyn Beal
Award #13 – Tulips
- First Place – Jean Rivers
- Second Place – Linda Rhodes
Award #14 – Pansies
- First Place – Judy Worthington
- Second Place – Linda Rhodes
Award #15 – Nouns With the Letter “C”
- First Place – John Rivers
- Second Place – Peggie McCollogh
- Third Place – Linda Rhodes
Award #16 – The Moon
- First Place – Linda Rhodes
Award #17 – People Doing Enjoyable Activities
- First Place – Judy Worthington
- Second Place – Peggie McCollogh
- Third Place – Linda Rhodes
Award #18 – 30 Different Hats
- First Place – Jean Rivers
- Second Place – Pat Howard
Award # 19 – Jerry Adkins Memorial Award (creative mounting)
- First Place – Laurie Smyrl
Recap of the 2012 NC State Show
The North Carolina State Button Society held its annual show May 18-19 in Greensboro, and a great time was had by all!
Here are some of the highlights:
- The educational display showing Division IV items and telling about their uses was beautiful and amazing! It was delightful to view and illuminating to read.
- On Friday night Paul Rice gave a fascinating overview of Division IV items, diving into the history of each group. Great examples can be found on his Button Country website here: http://www.buttoncountry.com/Div4WorkshopHome.htm. June Chapman and Amber Seward followed up with a Saturday workshop on mounting Division IV items – indispensable!
- The Silent Auction continued our theme by offering many Division IV item for sale, in addition to books, mounting cards, poke boxes and of course, buttons. Our thanks to the dealers and many members who donated items.
- We had a great year in tray competition with 39 trays being entered! The delightful popular vote on creative mounting of buckles was a special favorite of attendees.
- In our second year of having a Make and Take table for attendees to build small cards of buttons made of different materials, attendees cleaned us out by using all the cards and most of the buttons we had available. We’re spreading the word!
- Our four beautiful Raffle Baskets were a big hit, with two filled to the brim with Division IV items, one with a collector’s dream of LABELED plastic buttons (you know how hard those plastics are to identify) and one with wine and chocolates.
- We had a great year with 44 non-member attendees and 28 member attendees, which we attribute to the diligent work of our publicity co-chairs, Susan Hudson and Ann Abarno.
Our grateful thanks to these members who made our terrific show happen:
Show Chair: June Chapman
Welcome Sign: Gillian Bostick
Publicity: Susan Hudson & Ann Abarno
Nametags: Paula Woods
Show Programs: Paul Rice
Registration: Bob Whaley, Pat Koehler, Gillian Bostick, Marilyn Beal, Ann Abarno, Joy Childress
NCBS Button Bags: Gillian Bostick
Dealer Gift Bags: Laurie Smyrl
Educational display: Pat Howard, June Chapman, Amber Seward
Tray Check-In: Beverly Benjamin, Mary Mason
Judges & Clerks: Helen Vance, Gillian Bostick, Paul Rice, Marilyn Kinne, Pat Koehler, Ann Abarno, Karen Farnsworth, Paula Woods, Maggie Whitson, Mary Mason
Dealers: Shirley Clark, Bea Taran, Karen Farnsworth, Kevin & Marilyn Kinne, Mary Beers, Laurie Smyrl, Paula Woods, Pat Howard, Crocia Roberson
Educational Programs: Paul Rice, June Chapman, Amber Seward
We welcome your feedback about what you did or didn’t like about this year’s show, or what you think would improve the show. Please reply to this email with your suggestions.
SAVE THE DATE: next year’s show will be even better if we see YOU there – mark the date right now for May 17th & 18th, 2013 for our show “Metal Buttons from Around the World.”
We are looking for a member to volunteer to take photos next year – I did my best this year, but the few pictures I took don’t start to capture the fun and fellowship of the show. If you’d be available to take pictures next year, please let me know.
Button Best Wishes to All!
Central North Carolina Button Club 