Kanukama - the largest mother of pearl buttons in the UK

Kanukama has the largest mother of pearl buttons for sale in the UK as they come from the largest pearl-bearing oyster in the world, the Pinctada maxima.  It can grow up to 30 cm in diameter.   

Our largest button is the stunningly gigantic, Yangon orchid – which, from the tip of one petal to the tip of the other, measures a massive 143 mm.  The largest button in the Inle Flower collection is 85 mm wide, and 77 mm for the Amarapura round and Mrauk U square collections.  

The Pinctada maxima oyster also produces a very thick nacre, of up to 2 to 4 mm, compared to the Akoya oyster which has a nacre of around 0.25 mm to 0.8mm.  This gives our buttons a thickness of around 1.5 to 2 mm making them more durable.

The iridescence of mother of pearl comes from the layers of calcium carbonate which forms the nacre.  These layers are similar to a wave of light so the more layers there are the more iridescent the mother-of-pearl is.  Our buttons are highly iridescent given how thick their nacre it.