A Guide to Sewing Buttons

Buttons are one of the commonest fasteners in the world, found on everything from headgear and bags to pants and shirts. They’re very susceptible to wear and tear, though, and it’s inevitable that you’ll have to replace buttons at one time or another.

Sewing buttons looks like a complicated, dexterity-intensive procedure, but it’s actually a simple job that just about anybody can do.

Step 1: Finding the Materials

To begin, you’ll have to get your hands on a button and some thread. Although you could use any kind that you find lying around, you’ll probably want to get some that matches either the other buttons or the item being repaired. Using mismatched buttons or thread leaves you with a repair job that sticks out like a sore thumb – something few people want.

Buttons come in two variants – shank and sew-through. Shank buttons are usually plain and have no protrusions on their back end. Sewing buttons of the shank variety is done through a hole located at the back. Sew-through buttons, on the other hand, are so named because you sew the thread through the two or four holes that are in the middle of the button’s surface.

Step 2: Preparing to Work

Once you have your materials, you can prepare them for sewing buttons back onto the item. Take some thread and form a double strand, tying a knot around the open end to close it. Thread the needle using that double strand.

After preparing your needle and thread, look for the location where the button will be sewn back on. Make sure that the distance between buttons is still equal and that the location you found corresponds to the right buttonhole. Sew at the location without the button from the inside of the garment or item, and then make two or three stitches at that spot. The preliminary stitches will serve as an anchor for the button, making your work more durable than plainly Sewing buttons back on.

Step 3: Sewing the Button

If you’re sewing buttons of the sew-through variant, place the button over the anchor stitches. Make three or four stitches from within the item and through the holes in the button, securing it against the latter against the fabric. Once the stitches have been executed, sew the needle into the fabric and then repeatedly sew it through the loops formed by the stitches on the inside of the item. The last sewing will lock the stitches in place and strengthen the fastening of the button.

Sewing a shank button back onto an item is almost the same procedure. Place the button over the anchor stitches and then, from the inside of the garment, sew outward, through the hole in the shank button and then back inwards. Do this loop four to six times before finishing it like you would with a sew-through button.

Sewing buttons is a very simple affair, really. It shouldn’t take you more than ten minutes from acquiring the materials to looking at a job well done.