Tiny Folding Steel Buttonhook - French - Brandname:MANDOLINE

Here we have a Travelling Buttonhook, one that simply folds up small, with the hook protected, making it suitable to carry in the pocket or purse.  This folding steel buttonhook is French, marked with the word 'Depose' on one side and its brand - Mandoline - on the other.  When neatly folded, this item measures just two and a quarter inches and it is a little under 4 inches when fully open.  The opening and closing mechanism is a marvel - it clicks easily into position and holds the hook firm when open so that it can do its job! There is a pattern of arrows chased up the centre of the steel. Both collectable and useful this is a great little tool from the past dating from around the 1900's to the 1930's. It could be just the thing to slip into the bride's vanity case as part of the essential 'wedding day kit'!

A Testimonial from Mrs. Jemma Traynor -

'Thank you for the buttonhook, it was the most useful thing for helping with the small buttons on the back of my silk wedding dress.  My bridesmaid found it so easy to use.  We both think that it saved her manicured nails from any damage too!  I also have a pretty antique as a keepsake and feel sure that it may come in handy again.'

More information for collectors -

There is a strong  interest in buttons and buttonhooks of all kinds not just in the UK but across Continental Europe and the USA too.   A recommended publication is the Shire Book 'Buttonhooks and Shoehorns'  ISBN 0-85263-696-2 which traces the origins of these collectables. With lots of photos, it explains the various types of hook :-glove hooks, boot buttonhooks, combination hooks with a shoehorn etc.,  the many materials used to make them:-real gold and silver, to steels with other handles - mother of pearl, horn, ivory, bone, early plastics, bakelite, celluloid and other metals. There is information about how they were used for early advertising and  the methods of manufacture in the 19th Century and early 20th Century and the reasons why they became popular and, as fashions changed, fell out of favour.