Flower buttons

Flower buttons
2013
Hong Kong Museum of History collection
This set of exquisite flower buttons was made by Po Ming Wah, who has been producing traditional flower buttons for four decades and is one of the very few surviving experts in this craft in Hong Kong.
Flower buttons come in a hundred or more designs and styles and feature rich and exciting colour schemes. They are characterised by a rich repertoire of shapes and themes, including traditional auspicious patterns as well as flowers, birds, fish and insects. Flower buttons produced using traditional skills passed down by Shanghai craftsmen are regarded as more exquisite than their Guangdong counterparts. One of the characteristics of the Shanghai-style flower buttons is the 'stuffed loop'. Cotton wool is often stuffed into the loops to give more depth and solidity and thus a more opulent look.
Straight knotted buttons are largely used in traditional Chinese attire. The end of one braid is worked into a ball-like knot while the end of another is made into a loop. They are then stitched to either side of the front opening of the cheongsam. Cheongsam tailors usually only make knot-shaped buttons themselves; production of more complicated buttons is outsourced to specialist flower button makers. Flower buttons come in pairs and are identified as male (the knot) and female (the loop). Pairs where the male and female are an identical size are intended for the collar and the centre front opening. Those used on the lapel on the right side of the cheongsam usually comprise a larger male and a smaller female stitched on the upper and under-flap respectively, complementing each other to form a complete pattern.