The Button Pushers 119B Locke Street
After a delightful breakfast over at Jet Cafe, Kristin and I jetted over to The Button Pushers who, having previously been located on Ottawa Street, are now housed on Locke Street, to pick up our customized I Heart Hamilton Tour buttons! We’ll be rocking these fun accessories from now on (in lieu of our t-shirts) so if you spot us, you’ll know who we are. The Button Pushers were so helpful in taking note of our ideas and we left all creative control in their hands. They certainly did not disappoint! We chose to go with one which incorporated the colours of this blog, pink, black and white, along with a city landscape to represent the whole concept of ‘being a tourist in your own city.’
Carly had won a box of buttons in a raffle at kitestring’s Christmas Spectacular, a fitting win for someone like Carly, who loves buttons. I remember her excitement as she examined the beautifully designed box, carefully opened the lid and took a peek inside. Buttons galore, all shapes, sizes and colours! The three of us stood huddled over the box of buttons, rummaging through and pulling a few out at a time, examining them. This encounter led us to visiting the place which they’d been created.
The purpose of The Button Pushers is to do exactly that, push peoples’ buttons. We had a chance to speak with owner Joanna, who explained the concept behind The Button Pushers. She expressed a strong belief in social grassroots movements and causes in the city and the ability of people coming together to make a change and express themselves. It was great to hear her support for local groups, again, illustrating the sense of community. Joanna explained how buttons are the ideal way of spreading a message and raising awareness. They spark curiosity from passers-by, leading to people approaching you ever so often asking about the story behind your button. It’s amazing what something as simple as a button can do.
From the moment we walked in, we were drawn to what I have deemed the The Wall of Buttons which features a colourful collection of buttons. We stood in front of the wall, taking in the kaleidoscope of colours and messages, ranging in tone from serious to humourous. I must admit, Kristin and I stifled a few giggles every now and then at some of the buttons. As well as specializing in customized buttons, The Button Pushers houses some delightful vintage clothing. For all those vintage lovers out there, add The Button Pushers to your list of one-stop shops for all things vintage. Each piece is carefully handpicked and you could spend hours perusing the clothes. Keeping with the button theme, the prices are listed on buttons instead of the usual price tags. The Button Pushers even have birthday parties for children where they can design and make their own buttons. Such a fun idea!
Naturally, I wondered out loud to Kristin whether we’d spot actual buttons in this button shop and lo and behold, we spotted a box of buttons! Along with buttons, there are also magnets and many eye-catching accessories, such as hats and jewellery, My Dog Joe/Mulberry Street Coffeehouse and Cafe Femenino coffee, a collection of books and local artwork, all coming together to give a laid back feel to this quaint location.
One that caught my eye was a take on a Mahatma Gandhi quote which I’d incorporated in my fundraising for my Tanzania project, “Be the change you want to see.” I smiled to myself and thought about the power behind the simplest of actions, reminded how you can make a statement and express who you are through something as simple as a button.
xoxo Avi
