Yellow button with the image of a face that can either be smiling or frowning, depending on how the wearer places it. 

The classic yellow smiley face is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes, and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It was designed in 1963 by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.
The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However, his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

In internet culture the smiley face is often represented by a colon and a parentheses. :)

Metamorphic buttons are optical illusions formed when two images are drawn to look like one image. A reversible figure in a literal optical illusion requires the viewer’s perception to see one or the other image but both images are present. In this case, the button facing one direction creates the illusion of a happy smile with a wrinkled forehead from a smile or surprise. If the button is worn upside down, the smile is a from and the wrinkles look sad.

White button with red text and a red smiley face with eyebrows. 

The classic yellow smiley face is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes, and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It was designed in 1963 by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.
The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However, his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

“I’m a listener,” is a phrase to express that a person is good at listening. Being a good listener requires that you do not speak when others are speaking, make facial expressions and verbal sounds to confirm you are listening, and being able to repeat back the information that was just spoken to you. However, recent studies have shown that good listeners may interrupt while being spoken to, but only to ask a good question about the topic of discussion or for clarification.

Illustration of a smile on a green background

This is a variation on the classic smiley face. The original was designed in 1963 by by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.

The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

Black illustration of a smiling face with shamrock shaped eyes on a green background

This button was most likely produced for people to wear on Saint Patrick's Day, a cultural and religious holiday celebrated on March 17, the day of Saint Patrick's death. Saint Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, and the day commemorates the arrival of Christianity in Ireland and the heritage and culture of the Irish people.  According to legend, Saint Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity to Irish pagans, which accounts for the use of the shamrock to depict the eyes of the face on this button. It is customary to wear shamrocks and the color green on Saint Patrick's Day. Celebrations around the world include parades, feasts, festivals and drinking alcohol. 

Black illustration of a smiling face with shamrock shaped eyes on a green background

The classic yellow smiley face is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes, and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It was designed in 1963 by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.
The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However, his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

This variation on the traditional smile was most likely produced for people to wear on Saint Patrick's Day, a cultural and religious holiday celebrated on March 17, the day of Saint Patrick's death. Saint Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, and the day commemorates the arrival of Christianity in Ireland and the heritage and culture of the Irish people. According to legend, Saint Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity to Irish pagans, which accounts for the use of the shamrock to depict the eyes of the face on this button. It is customary to wear shamrocks and the color green on Saint Patrick's Day. Celebrations around the world include parades, feasts, festivals and drinking alcohol.

Yellow smiley face button with black text. 

Garsten Motors is an automotive retailer based in Riverhead, New York. The dealership—now named Apple Honda—was founded by businessman Irwin Garsten in 1959. Originally, Garsten Motors was located on Main Street but moved to a three-acre plot on Route 58 in 1972. Today, Route 58 is a heavily commercialized part of town and a major stop on the Long Island Expressway, helping to bring business to Apple Honda. At 86, Irwin Garsten continues to work at his beloved company and intends to pass it on to his son and Apple Honda’s manager Bill Fields. During his sixty years in business, Garsten has owned around seventeen auto franchises but claims that Apple Honda is by far his most successful.

The classic yellow smiley face is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes, and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It was designed in 1963 by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.
The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However, his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

Illustration of a smiley with flowers for eyes on a rainbow sparkly background

This button is part of the 2014 Button-O-Matic artist series produced by Busy Beaver Button Company. It was designed by artist Carrie Vinarsky.

Yellow smiley face with a blood drip by the left eye. 

Featured here is one of the most iconic images from the comic and film Watchmen: a bloodied smiley face. In the story, the morally bankrupt superhero the Comedian wears the button, and it becomes blood-stained during the course of the inciting event of the narrative. This design appears to be specifically tied to the release of the 2009 film adaptation of the comic.

The classic yellow smiley face is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It  was designed in 1963 by by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.

The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

Yellow button with black text surrounding a smiley face

“Don’t Worry Be Happy” is a phrase used most often in the 1960s. It was spoken first by Indian Spiritual Guru Meher Baba 1894-1969. Baba believed himself to be an Avatar which is God in human form. In 1988, the musician Bobby McFerrin released a song titled “Don’t Worry Be Happy” and it was the first a cappella song to reach the Billboard 100.

The classic yellow smiley face is comprised of a yellow circle, two black dots for eyes, and a black arc ending in serifs for a mouth. It was designed in 1963 by commercial artist, Harvey Ross Ball. Ball was commissioned by The State Mutual Life Insurance Company to create a happy face to raise the morale of their employees. His version was created in 10 minutes. The design was printed onto more than 50 million buttons. Neither Ball nor the company copyrighted this smiley, so it was continually used by other businesses in their promotions.
The design and concept is quite simple and was definitely used before Ball’s 1963 version. However, his has become the most iconic. Variations have been used for advertising campaigns and in popular culture ever since.

Illustration of a smiley with the Burger King logo for eyes on a white background

This was a promotional button given out by Burger King, a worldwide chain of fast food restaurants founded in 1953. The era that this button was given out was during Burger King’s peak years of advertising. After two decades of unsuccessful advertising campaigns they would eventually partner with CP+B to create “The King” character, until accusations of the ads being sexist or culturally insensitive, leading to the advertising taking a new direction in 2011.