Cute as a Button
“Isn’t she the cutest thing? Why, she’s as cute as a button.”
I have heard that expression since I was knee high to a grasshopper. People said it to describe:
- Babies
- Children and youth of all ages
- Puppies, kittens, or other animals
Cute as a button usually refers to a small person, animal, or object.
Of course, not all buttons are cute. Neither are all buttons small. However, most are both.
As a child, I spent hours playing with my Granny Childress’s buttons. Since she sewed for others, she always had boxes of buttons.
- Cute buttons
- Shiny buttons
- Tiny buttons
- Huge buttons
- Buttons of every size and shape
Cute as a button refers either to how we act or how we look.
Granny enjoyed my playing with her buttons. They kept me still and quiet while she sewed. For Granny, still and quiet made me cute as a button. When I wore one of her dresses, she said I looked cute as a button.
Actions and appearance don’t always match.
I did not always act cute when I wore one of those cute dresses. When that happened, Granny told me, “Pretty is as pretty does.” She reminded me that how I act is much more important than how I look.
“Even small children are known by their actions” (Proverbs 20:11 NIV).
Thanks to Janna Babak for the suggestion.
Do you have an expression you want explained? If so, please comment below.
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I watched my Granny Childress sew many times. Sometimes she used a sewing machine like this one. Sometimes she sewed by hand. Either way, she knew a stitch in time saves nine. In other words, a little work now prevents a lot of work later.
I wonder if wearing an apron will help me follow in the footsteps of my Granny Beasley.
I doubt that my