Luck of the Irish

I know I am several days late (thanks to National Button Week!) and at least a dollar short as I did not find that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow yet, but I did find these intricate shamrock decorations for celebrating St. Patrick's Day. I found these at an antique show a few months ago and was intrigued by the thread and wire work used to create these ~ it is actually similar to some of the old Victorian hair work techniques. The pipe on the light green decoration is die cut and embossed paper, while the little hat is ceramic ~ if you look carefully, you can see the label that says "Made in Japan".

{back view}

I'll bet these were added to corsages or hats or as a boutonniere to show your spirit ~ I have no idea when they were made ~ just wish there were such things on the market today. At any rate, wishing you all a month of the luck of the Irish ~ hope you all had a Happy St. Patrick's Day!