These buttons are made of melamine. They document an important plastic that was first used in wartime and has since become a popular material for a range of consumer applications. They also highlight the practical properties of plastics, which make them perfect alternatives to traditional materials such as bone and ivory. Melamine offers advantages over other traditional button materials such as bone, ivory and horn. It's waterproof, won't burn or melt, is easy to make, comes in a variety of colors and is durable. The buttons highlight the importance of plastics in the post-World War II consumer market. With new fashions and apparel fabrics, both style and durability are critical.
Melamine Buttons – From Tableware to Shirtwear:
You probably don't put a lot of thought into buttons on the clothes you wear, but trust me, someone does. One of the most astonishing developments in button technology (if any) of the twentieth century was the use of melamine resin, a plastic polymer formed from melamine and formaldehyde. Melamine products are shatterproof, fireproof and very lightweight, making them ideal for military applications, but not in the way you might first think.
In 1940, the U.S. Navy was looking for a replacement for its dinnerware. The ceramic plates, bowls and mugs they had been using were too heavy, too fragile and too large for Navy use, especially with the outbreak of World War II threatening to sweep over the United States at any moment. The British armed forces have switched to a urea-formaldehyde plastic called the Beetle, but it is far less elastic than the Americans would like

