How to Antique Brass Buttons
Antique brass buttons to give them a more vintage or appealing appearance. Antiquing adds an aged patina to the surface of a button and helps the button's design stand out. Antique a brass button if you need to age a button to match a set or to match a vintage garment. You don't need any special equipment or expertise to antique brass buttons, just gather your materials and set aside about 15 minutes to start the process.
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Things You'll Need
- Bucket with lid
- 2 cups ammonia
- Scissors
- Sewing needle
- Dental floss
- Heavy-duty tape
Instructions
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Place the bucket outside on a flat surface. Pour in 2 cups of ammonia.
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2
Place the lid on top of the bucket. This will keep the fumes inside.
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3
Cut an 18-inch length of dental floss and thread the needle with the floss.
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4
Thread the buttons onto the floss. Do not push the buttons all the way to the end of the floss, they all need to be in the middle. If needed, you can tie a knot between buttons; unless your buttons are very heavy, knots won't be needed.
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5
Remove the bucket lid. Hold the piece of floss over the bucket. Use tape to secure the floss to the bucket on two sides. The buttons should be suspended over the ammonia inside the bucket.
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6
Run a strip of tape around the edge of the bucket to further secure the floss. Confirm that the buttons are not touching each other or the ammonia and then place the lid on top of the bucket.
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7
Leave the bucket in place overnight. Check the buttons the next day. If they have achieved the level of patina you like, remove the strand and use the buttons as desired. If they need more antiquing, replace the lid and check again the next day.
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Tips & Warnings
Use this technique to age other pieces of brass as well.
String multiple strands of buttons to suspend over the ammonia if you need to antique a lot of buttons.
Do not spill ammonia or splash it around, it will burn your skin.
Do not consume ammonia or leave it in a place that kids or pets could access it.
References
- Photo Credit Decorative brass ashtray image by andrus from Fotolia.com
