The Button Dept. : Midnight Sparkle
Back in 2013, my friend Paul of Smash Salvage asked me if I would be interested in checking out some boxes of vintage buttons he had just bought. I was curious and when I went by his shop, I was pretty overwhelmed to see over 30 large moving boxes filled with smaller boxes of buttons. As I peeked under a few lids, I gasped to see beautiful coloured glass buttons and some of the most unusual and fun plastic buttons I had ever seen. I knew that if I bought that lot of vintage buttons from Paul, I would NEVER have to worry about sourcing buttons for the workroom ever again. The Button Dept. was born!
It's been over a decade and we are STILL finding amazing treasure within these boxes. About a month ago, I happened upon some gorgeous jet black beaded buttons, and then I found another size and then a few days later I found a third size. Hello - Licorice Sparkle! These unique buttons reflect everything that is wonderous about something that is crafted by hand, and of course they were made in Japan.
This one discovery really inspired us to get back to cataloguing and sharing these special treasures with you on a regular basis once more.
This first small collection is called Midnight Sparkle, we added in some other fun dark and shimmery buttons. I'm not going to lie, I wanted to keep these to myself. We don't have that many and these are so SPECIAL. Once they are gone, we definitely don't have any more. I'm delighted to know we have a core community of makers who get as inspired as I do by these little vintage closures.
Now that the entire collection is all together here is Sprucedale, we are also making it all accessible when you come to visit us. ALL the boxes that have been hidden in storage are now out on the shelves. The big grey bins of hanging card buttons, sorted by colour, are now upstairs in the studio. Just another fun reason to come visit us at the General Store.
If you're interested in getting early access to our upcoming vintage button releases, you can sign up here
Jump over to The Button Dept. and find some beautiful treasures for your next project..
the shop
Printed & Inspired : New Capstone Pattern Co and Syd Graham PDF Patterns
We love to watch you discover all of the PDF sewing patterns we carry at the workrorom as your orders come through for wide format printing! We started with Merchant & Mills, Closet Core Patterns and Thread Theory Designs and are working on adding more of their patterns. We are excited to expand our range of PDF patterns to include a shop favourite Capstone Pattern Co and the popular Syd Graham Patterns. We have all of the patterns currently offered by both designers available in the New & Note Worthy section - check them out!
Discovering new indie pattern designers along with you through our A0 PDF Printing Services is always a joy. Below are a few of the A0 PDF patterns we printed since the beginning of July, maybe they’ll inspire your next make too!
Genow Patterns - Lorraine Dress
Merchant & Mills - Billy Vest
Lizzy House - Cookie Party Quilt Pattern
The New Craft House - Everyday Shirt
Closet Core Patterns - Elodie Wrap Dress
Closet Core Patterns - Cielo Top + Dress
The Assembly Line - Pull On Trousers
The Assembly Line - Wrap Top
SeamWork - Natalie
Merchant & Mills - Sommer Dress
Closet Core - Charlie Caftan
Sew Liberated - Madrone Pants
All of these patterns came through our A0 PDF pattern printing service - a wonderful way to explore new designers and level up your handmade wardrobe. If you haven’t tried it yet, it’s simple to upload your files and we’ll print, fold, and ship them right to you or choose local pick up at our Parkdale Pick up Point or here in Sprucedale.
Simply Sashiko
We've added a couple new Sashiko books to our shelves recently. Simply Sashiko gives you simple but thorough lessons on the ins and outs (literally) of 36 different sashiko patterns, plus designs for stylish home and personal accessories so you can try them out. I added a little video flip through the book to the online shop. This book is surprisingly detailed in all the right ways so you can apply these designs to the projects you want to make.
Printed & Inspired : Summer Dresses
Dresses are keeping everyone cool this summer! We love the variety and styles you have been sending us to print recently.
