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NewsFebruary 10, 1991

Old buttons, trinkets whose clasps are broken, but whose special memories are fastened forever to their owners' hearts, medals from long ago wars: We've all got at least some of these things. Chances are they're stored in small, dusty boxes tucked deep inside dresser drawers. To us, they're the reminder of yesterday but for two area artisans, they're the jewelry of today...

Old buttons, trinkets whose clasps are broken, but whose special memories are fastened forever to their owners' hearts, medals from long ago wars: We've all got at least some of these things.

Chances are they're stored in small, dusty boxes tucked deep inside dresser drawers. To us, they're the reminder of yesterday but for two area artisans, they're the jewelry of today.

And, if LaDonna Gosche of Kelso and Mary Jo Shelton of Jackson continue their jewelry-making success, it won't be long before a lot of us are wearing hearts of our memories on our sleeves.

The women have turned back the clock in production of their "Treasures of the Heart." They design and make heart-shaped heirlooms out of heirlooms, by hand.

Using antique buttons, trinkets and medals, Gosche and Shelton turn out one-of-a-kind broaches.

Their work has already attracted national attention in a feature, which appears in the February issue of ~Victoria magazine.

"I've always collected antiques, and especially buttons," explained Gosche, who operated an antique store at Kelso for five years. "My family and friends are always giving me the little buttons and trinkets they have."

Two years ago, Gosche took stock of her buttons.

"I decided it was time I did something with them," she said. "She selected some of her treasures and turned them into a heart-shaped, button-laden broach for her friend and former antique store partner, Mary Jo Shelton.

The idea of making more broaches and working together once again as a team appealed to the longtime friends and "Treasures of the Heart" was born.

"We started going through button boxes and jars in earnest then," Gosche commented. Response for the broaches and pins the two made at the request of friends was good so good, in fact, that someone sent information about their venture to Victoria Magazine.

The response to the magazine article was nothing short of phenomenal.

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"People started sending us old buttons, trinkets, even old pictures," said Gosche. "They asked for broaches, pins, and decorations on the pictures. One person sent us a framed picture of a Civil War soldier, along with several buttons from an old Civil War uniform.

The work they are commissioned to do arrives from all over the country. Several specialty shops have approached the pair about putting Treasures of the Heart designs in their stores.

Success hasn't come without its price. Gosche has taken a month's leave of absence from her job to concentrate on filling orders and getting ahead on inventory for shops that want to sell their designs.

"I can make 10 to 15 a day," she said, adding that each piece is designed differently. Gosche places the buttons on the design, then sends it along to Shelton, who adds touches of brocade, tapestry or edging.

"We make all different sizes, most from two to five inches," said Gosche. "But we have had requests for wall-size plaques, and one person wanted a paperweight designed as a heart, with service buttons and medals.

How the broaches are made is not a company secret, Gosche said. She starts with a piece of light balsa-type craft wood (hearts can be cut or purchased pre-cut in many craft stores). "We select enough buttons for the first layer, using that as a base," she explained. "We glue the buttons to the board, using a clear-drying glue.

"Then comes the hard part designing the broach. That's something you learn as you work with the buttons." After the piece is complete, the buttons are carefully polished.

Among some of the more unusual requests Gosche and Shelton have received are ones for brocaded handbags and hat boxes. The ideas are welcome, she added, "I'm always working on new designs."

Perhaps as challenging as designing the pieces is finding the buttons to use on them, Gosche admitted.

"We're keeping watch for old buttons everywhere we go," she said. "We especially concentrate on finding buttons that date prior to the Civil War."

The business is also turning into something of a family affair. Gosche's mother, Marie Reeves, helps answer mail; her husband, Mick, and son, Bryan, a freshman at Southeast Missouri State University, go "antiquing" for buttons. Shelton's husband, Jim, often joins Mick and Bryan on button outings.

For Gosche and Shelton, the business aspect of what they do still hasn't overshadowed the creative aspect.

"Many of the pieces we make represent special moments in people's lives," Gosche said. "And, that's a nice feeling. The things people send us really are treasures from their hearts."

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