At my best friend's request: You should do a blog about how to sew on a button! (Even though she knows I'd sew on a button for her in a heartbeat!) It's a really good skill that sometimes I forget not everyone knows how to do (properly). I am sure there are more ways people have found to accomplish this goal, but this method has served me well.
I can honestly say that I've never had to sew on the same button twice thanks to this technique.
I'd like to credit my high school Home Ec teacher--Mrs. Lisa "There's a Method to my Madness" Tapper for this one. She taught me about the THREAD SHANK, and is one of the few really useful things I learned in high school(!) and now I'm passing it on to you. For free.
Mrs.Tapper also used to recommend that we rip off the buttons on every new garment we bought, just to take the time to put them on properly. If we did that right away, we'd never need to fix a button. Ever. She was totally right. Not that I actually DO that. Come on. I'm not THAT proactive.
Here's how to fix the button that falls off because it was poorly attached to begin with or because the thread breaks and the rest of it unravels: (this is different from the button that comes off because the fabric rips, that is more about "patching" than buttoning.)
It's going to be hard to see what I'm doing here, so I'll do my best to explain. First pull out the broken threads. You will most likely be able to see the actual needle holes from where the original stitching was. Thread a needle using a double strand of thread.
A good tip to any hand-stitching chore is to never use a length of thread that is longer than the length from your wrist to your armpit. The reason for this is that it is inefficient. You want to be able to make a stitch with one fluid motion. Also, long strands of thread can tangle more easily. That sucks. Sorry, back to subject.
Once you know where your button goes, secure the thread by inserting the needle into the top hole from one side of the button and out the bottom hole from the other side. In other words, if your button looks like this : : you will be starting the thread by pulling through either like this / or like this \ depending on whether you're right or left-handed. (Like making half an X) Do whatever feels comfortable for you. You do not have a knot or anything tied to the end of your thread. Just pull it through the holes until you have a short, manageable tail sticking out--like an inch long is plenty.
Next, gently put the needle back through the same holes in the same order that you did to begin with. Pull gently and notice that you've created a loop with the thread. When the loop is cinched up to an inch diameter or so, put your needle through center of the loop and pull the whole thing snug. There. You have secured your thread. You do not need big chunky knots.
Now, begin the process of stitching the button on by bringing the needle up from underneath the button into one of the TOP holes and back through (from the front side of the button) the lower hole going all the way through to the back side of the fabric. Repeat on the opposite side. Keep alternating sides at least 4-5 times. End with your needle sticking out the back side.
Get ready for the shank.
This is the part that makes this button technique super secure. The thread shank. You may have noticed on your other garments how other buttons are sewn on. It is mostly done by machine, and just secure enough to last one washing. The thread shank supports the button, holds it above the fabric, keeps the threads from breaking and/or unraveling.
Bring the needle up from underneath by sticking it through below the exact center of the button in between your stitching. So, in other words, imagine that your button is a table top, and the stitches that go through the holes are the legs of the table. You are inserting your needle as though you are coming up from UNDER the "table". Angle the needle so that you are pulling it straight upwards. If your button is a clock, your thread would be twelve o'clock. With a snug thread, start winding it around the base of the button, wrapping your stitches. Wrap it at least 10 times. You have just made a thread shank. Insert your needle into the center of everything and pull through to the back.
Repeat the same process of the stitch and loop that you used to secure the thread at the beginning, except loop it through and pull it snug twice. Then I slip the needle under the stitching one last time, and snip the thread close to the fabric. That's it.
Simple and secure.
Shanks a lot!
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