Buttons, buttons whose got the buttons?
From Betsey Johnson…
Buttons Up!
I’ve been in love with Betsey’s designs since I found an amazing full length, stretchy black velvet dress that I had to have when I was 20. It had a Betsey Johnson label in it and I could barely afford it, but it became my first really nice dress, perfect for elegant parties should I find my way to any. Even better at the underground parties that were so fun in the late 80s. These leg warmers are another must have Betsey for me, at $40 they are a stretch for most sock budgets, but for something I will treasure for the rest of my life (like the Betsey beaded shoes I found at Betsey’s shop in Soho last time I made it out to visit EG in NYC) I think they’re a steal. Because they are so high end we started with a much smaller order than I would like and I’m not sure if we’ll run out within days like we have with another style I’ll cover in a moment…
So, for $40 you’d expect them to be something like cashmere right? I did, but instead they are a really soft acrylic that will wash and wear better over it’s lifetime with less fuss and muss than the furry stuff. We’ll get our Betsey cashmere fix in a few weeks with leggings and tights that look fantastic.
From Hot Sox…
This ever-elusive button up warmer has continued to be as hard to get this year and sells out just as fast, we have at least two more very large orders of them scheduled to come in, but as usual, I’m not sure exactly when they’ll get here.
What I do know is it isn’t soon enough!
From Leg Avenue…
We were super excited when we first saw these show up in a Leg Avenue catalog. So excited that I ordered alot without even seeing or trying them only to discover they run small, painfully small, yet too long to be worn as sleeves on me.
…note the dents left in my thighs after just about 15 minutes of wearing them. The little belts have alot of empty holes left to loosen them, but the tops of the warmers will not go more than 15 inches comfortably and since the buttons are purely decorative you cannot simply undo a few. At first we thought we could just sell them in the store because we feared mass returns due to fit, but whenever someone would try them on they decided not to buy them. I let our L.A. rep know about this, we even pulled a few pairs out last time she was in so she could see what we meant, we hope that next time around they will be what we were hoping for, a cool spat-like warmer that will fit most of us. If you are very small and/or thin and love these count yourself as lucky and grab a pair! Leg Avenue has another style I’m bringing in to try, the buttons are also decorative rather than functional, but everyone is so mad for buttons perhaps they won’t mind?
and finally, buttoned sock garters from Sock Dreams…
Lily is working on bunches now that we have restocked the goods to make them
…nobody’s fault but mine this time, too much going on the past couple of months to keep up with it all. Ah, but I’m settling in and enjoying fall with all the snuggly, button-y goodness it brings! Someone asked recently if all our fall items are up. Not even close, I like to keep fresh stuff coming all the way til new years.
And then, I start all over again…
October 26th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
This is probably a dumb thought, but the leg avenue warmers look as if they flare towards the foot end. Might it be worth trying them on upside down, and just shifting the belt?
They’re so lovely, it’s a pity they’re a size my legs haven’t seen since puberty!
October 26th, 2008 at 1:31 pm
…if only it was that easy. They completely lose any resemblance to spats and you’d need new belt loops. Not saying it couldn’t be done though. I think they could be easily modified for the crafty sewers out there too. Brenna will be trying a pair to see what she can come up with…
October 26th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
Funny, I was JUST showing somebody those lovely, thick, chunky-buttoned legwarmers that are out of stock! I’ll be keeping an especially keen eye out, now!
October 26th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
Oh man, normal sized spats in several colors (black, brown, grey, white, etc) would be AWESOME.
October 26th, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Eeeek! the Brown knees are up!!! Amanda did an awesome job with these, took all the pictures and edited them too, she wrote all the copy and, of course, picked out the tastiest brownie colors for fall and made another Sock Dream a reality. Great job Amanda, a review is in order ~=D
October 26th, 2008 at 10:58 pm
A question about the button-up leg warmers, if you don’t mind. I had been eyeing those babies FOREVER, and when I saw them in stock this fall, I went ahead and made my first sockdreams order. The black pair was adorable, but oh so very baggy on my stupid skinny calves, which was just a little disappointing. The design was so cute that I went ahead and nabbed a pair in natural anyway, and they were much more wearable; the button holes are tighter, the fit through the middle is more snug, and laid flat on top of a black one, one of my naturals is noticeably narrower. I was wondering, is the bagginess of my black pair typical of that color, or just specific to that one pair? I have only tried them on once (it’s not yet cold enough for thick leg warmers in Florida) so I figured I could maybe pass mine along to my sister and nab another pair if it would fit better…
October 27th, 2008 at 4:15 am
fantastic browknees stuff! every pic is smashing (pumpkin’s is perfect!) and the teal is so matching! oh i know these/the knees never really work on me but you all get me every time with your great pics and the scrumptious color combos!
and i am loving this post! massive pic post – gotta love it! do you still have the Betsey dress?
October 27th, 2008 at 5:06 am
oh yeah – forgot – LOVE those leopard jeans!
October 27th, 2008 at 9:16 am
I, too, am lusting for the leopard jeans with the zipper ankles. I had a turquoise overdyed pair like that back in the early to mid 80’s that I loved. Wore them every chance I got. My mother hated them.
Then my late 80’s roommate bought a leopard print jean jacket that looks like it may have come from the same group as the jeans in the pic above. I lusted for that jacket, too. Might have been Guess? Or Bongo?
October 27th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
so it looks like i’m not the only one with buttons on the brain this year! Perhaps I can help other button-lovers soon. ;)
October 27th, 2008 at 7:23 pm
First off, those Betsey button-ups are the silkiest acrylic stuff I have ever handled. They feel like a million bucks!
The Leg Avenue Buttoned Spat Leg Warmers, on the other hand, are silly tiny. However, they are perfect fodder for modifying! I am very in love with what I ended up with after two quick cuts and a little bit of straight stitching, some more (and more generous) elastic and some seriously pretty ruffle lace:
They’re a nice, tight knit, so I didn’t have to worry about not being able to serge the raw edges.
October 28th, 2008 at 8:57 am
i can’t wait to see what you have come up with Brenna! And at first glance i was pretty indifferent about those Betsy button leg warmers but after seeing and touching a pair, oh how I want some! :)
October 28th, 2008 at 9:52 am
I know. They’re so fancy feeling!
And Delijay, the new crop of Hot Sox Button-Ups do seem slimmer than the bunch from last year. They’re longer too!
I tried putting a picture in my comment, but it didn’t work. I can try again, and also try a link.
If it doesn’t work, I’m sorry, I failed at the internet.
(edited by niqkita)
November 7th, 2008 at 5:01 am
I just bought a pair of the Leg Avenue Buttoned Spat Leg Warmers; hopefully they’ll be fine with my 14-inch thighs.
I’d really like to see more leg warmers like that (Victorian-esque?) from Sock Dreams, maybe in knee-high length or made of warmer material like wool.
December 5th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Oh man, those Leg Avenue spats are beautiful! I’d love to have a pair to wear as arm warmers (I like it when my hand is covered, so the length wouldn’t be an issue).
Do you know if you have any pairs lingering in storage anywhere? I’ll ask when I visit the storefront, it would be fantastic if I could get some.
December 5th, 2008 at 8:54 pm
I think there may be, but cannot be sure at the moment…
April 6th, 2009 at 7:33 am
[...] first saw these last October and were less than thrilled, at least I was, but we quickly sold out, restocked and sold out again. [...]