“THE LOOK”: This mixed media mosaic by Helene Plank was featured on the cover of the National Button Bulletin, and will be on display at the New Jersey State Button Society’s Fall Show September 11 at the Union Fire Company in Titusville. Measuring 25 by 31 inches, it uses buttons, sequins, and beads made from glass, plastic, metal, wood, and ceramics, and it took 118 hours to complete.

Celebrating its 80th birthday, the New Jersey State Button Society (NJSBS) will open its Fall Show and Competition to the public, for free, on Saturday, September 11 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Union Fire Company and Rescue Squad hall, 1396 River Road in Titusville.

“We’re offering special activities for those new to button collecting, says Barbara Figge Fox, NJSBS president. “Safety is our first priority. Masks, available at the door, will be required at all times.”

Members of the NJSBS share an interest in studying, collecting, and preserving clothing buttons, both old and new. Sewers, knitters, quilters, costume designers, and re-enactors will be able to choose from thousands of clothing buttons offered by dealers from the eastern seaboard.

Button displays will celebrate its birthday, and Frank Sinatra song hits from 1941 (“Oh Look at Me Now”) will signal the hourly drawing of door prizes. On view will be button art by Helene Plank, who has created more than 20 prize-winning button mosaics, each using from 1,700 to 1,900 buttons, sewn onto the canvas.

For information on “Together Again,” the first in-person button show in the tri-state area since COVID, go to NewJerseyStateButtonSociety.com, email ButtonsInNewJersey@gmail.com, or call (609) 759-4804.