Lou Lou Buttons — Local services in New York

PSA: Be Cautious Shopping at Lou Lou Buttons in NYC

Last year, my daughter and I stumbled upon a shop in NYC called Lou Lou Buttons. We met a man named Ross who captivated us with tales of handmade buttons and accessories, claiming he’d done work for Beyoncé, Madonna, and Chanel. He told us he was sometimes allowed to keep overproduced items, which he’d then repurpose into brooches, pens, and hairpieces.

It was charming, and I genuinely believed him. We bought a few pieces last year and made it a point to return this year, he was literally our first stop.

This time, though, something felt off. He showed us “rare” bumblebee pens supposedly made with 18k gold and “scarab” hairpins cast from antique French glass. The pricing was steep ($25 to $65 per item) but the storytelling was persuasive.

Out of curiosity, I ran a quick Google Lens search after I got back to the hotel. Sure enough, the exact same items are on Amazon—$65 brooch? $15. $35 brooch? $8.

So, just a heads-up: if you’re enchanted by the tales and don’t mind paying boutique prices for mass-produced Amazon accessories, by all means go for it. But if you’re looking for true artisan work, I’d recommend verifying what you’re buying. Google Lens is your friend.

Not trying to tear anyone down—just wishing I’d known before I dropped a small fortune on what turned out to be pot metal...

Plenty of button shops in the area — skip this one. I had one of the most rude and humiliating experiences here earlier today. I came in looking for a specific type of button and asked the owner for help. He brought out a few options that were close but not quite right, and said that’s all they had. On my way to pay, I spotted the exact buttons I’d been looking for and asked if I could switch.

Instead of simply swapping them, he told me not to touch anything else until I returned his buttons to their original location — mind you he was the one that grabbed them for me and his buttons were all so disorganized anyway. I agreed and started looking for where they might’ve come from. As I did, he began belittling me, saying I “needed to be decisive” and refused to help me return them.

Trying to move things along, I asked him where to put them back. That’s when he snapped, told me not to touch anything else in the store, and said I should just leave. The store was completely empty — I wasn’t being disruptive, just trying to buy buttons and be respectful.

Needless to say, I left and found the exact buttons I needed at a nearby shop — without the hostility....

Terrible, NASTY, and RUDE customer service. Over priced product. Went to pickup a couple extra buttons for my boss and the man immediately gave me attitude, teased me and sarcastically asked “well aren’t you going to help” when I asked him to help me find a button. After I picked which pieces I wanted (as some were dirty/discolored) he chastised me and tossed a bag on the counter and walked away. I put the pieces in the baggie myself and went to pay. When I left he handed me a card and said “give this to someone more intelligent, not… normal”. I have NEVER experienced anyone so insulting, rude, and unwilling to help. I am in the garment district shopping almost everyday and will never go to this small, overpriced store ever again. The fact he was so comfortable insulting me, to my face, while I was making a purchase is beyond me. You can get much higher quality buttons and trim for a lower price at many other places in the garment district. Don’t waste...