Mother of Pearl buttons
Posted: May 01 2011
Mother of Pearl buttons are the finest, most beautiful buttons that you can buy. Their luster, iridescence and feel is incomparable to anything else. Mother of pearl is otherwise known as nacre and is found on shells such as oysters, freshwater mussels, abalone and trochus.
Mother of pearl is not only used for buttons but also elaborate inlays on watches, jewelry and musical instruments such as guitar fingerboards. As with most caviars, Beluga (at $5,000 a kg!) is usually handled with a spoon made of mother of pearl.
The traditional pearl is made up of nacre, and this is where the name “mother of pearl” comes from. Mother of pearl buttons have been used for centuries famed for their incomparable beauty, durability and class. There is no comparison between mother of pearl buttons and plastic/polyester buttons. A tailored shirt is only as good as its buttons! 
In the past, oysters were harvested from the wild, however, now they are commercially grown in a viable and environmentally friendly way.
Mother of Pearl is an exclusive and highly sought after commodity and as such cannot be compared to plastic and polyester. MOP buttons are a premium product, finely crafted, beautifully prepared and a timeless addition to any garment.
Here at Tailor On Ten we offer many stunning buttons all of which have been created out of the finest mother of pearl that there is. We offer MOP buttons made from Tahitian, Pacific and Andaman oysters, mussels and trochus. They have been selected for their beautiful lustre and extremely dense, strong shell.
We offer a range of beautiful buttons to suit your needs.
A dress shirt traditionally uses size 18L 4 hole buttons for the placket, cuffs and collar as well as pockets and epaulettes. For the sleeve placket (underside of the forearm) and the button-down collar, the buttons used are slightly smaller at 14L. However, if a thicker button is desired, generally slightly smaller buttons are used (16L and 14L).
Buttons are measured in “Lignes” or L with 40 Lignes equaling 1 inch (i.e, 18L equals 11.6 mm; 16L equals 10.16 mm; 14L equals 8.89 mm).
See more info on our shirt buttons or our suit buttons. Or why you should choose us for your tailoring needs.
