Saturday, October 29, 2011

Button, oh Button!


I carry around what many would term a grandma bag, mostly because I insist on carrying certain items with me at all times.  A book, sunglasses, hand sanitizer, and my camera are must-haves without which I rarely leave home.  While there are lots of chic, over-sized bags out there, I can't pull myself away from the bookstore long enough to shell out for one.  Over the past year in England I accrued a small collection of literary buttons from various museums that spice it up a bit.  It's wonderful to have these little reminders of past travels that pay homage to some of my favourite books and authors.  I think I need to start a proper collection.

 It's abundantly clear where I picked this one up.
It was the first little button I purchased.
'Hail to thee blithe spirit'
Courtesy of the Keats Shelley House in Rome
This 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' button 
from the RSC in Stratford was a gift from Ana
Thank you, I will take that as a compliment!
Finally, the world's coolest address
from the Sherlock Holmes Museum on Baker Street, London

P.S. The title of this post is an allusion to the Potter Puppet Pals video, Snape's Diary.  When Snape tragically loses a button on his cloak, he conjures the following 'Ode to a Button' (that's not the title, but this one just came to me):

Button, oh button! Oh, where hath thou fled?
Did thee tarry too long amongst fabric and thread?
Did thee roll off my bosom and cease to exist?
How I wish I could follow thee into the mist.

There are many, many recitations of this Ode at my house. 

4 comments:

Brooke said...

I LOVE that 'A midsummer Night's dream' button! And I think the Sherlock Holmes one is a close second!

o said...

Your buttons are so cool :) I have a load too, but they were all either bought for me or I got myself when I was a teenager and in my emo phase. I need cool buttons. And I can never find a bag I like either: I'm nt one for having a million bags - I have three, one of which is ugly and a mistake, one got yoghurt spilled in it and one, the one I always use, is lovely but falling apart.

Diana said...

Brooke, I think you need one of those Midsummer Night's Dream buttons. It definitely applies to you! :)

Diana said...

O: I feel your yoghurt pain! I skilfully drenched the case for my glasses in yoghurt, so my poor spectacles are now scratched and broken. Funnily enough, people ask me if I'm trying to make a fashion statement with them.