It’s high time to talk to you about buttons! I don’t know about you, but I’m really a fan of beautiful buttons; I can spend a lot of time in front of button displays in haberdasheries or at my suppliers. I find that buttons really help finish a sewing project by adding an original, chic, or even classic touch depending on individual tastes.
Choosing buttons is a step I find important but also fun in the sewing process. I actually have a nice collection of buttons in advance that I draw from for each new project. While buttons belong to the family of clothing fasteners, which also includes snaps, zippers, Velcro... there are many different kinds. That’s what I invite you to discover in this article.
A bit of history
The button is a small object with a very simple appearance but has a very long history behind it!Indeed, traces of buttons date back nearly 4,000 years BC in the form of engraved shells and more similar to their current form around 2,000 years BC.
At that time, buttons were primarily decorative and used solely for aesthetic purposes. They did not fasten clothing. It took nearly 3,000 years for their fastening function to be activated... with the invention of the buttonhole!
In the 18th century, records show buttonmaker guilds registered in the trades registry in France. The button fastens clothing and becomes, in a way, a piece of jewelry. It is decorated and embellished. Precious materials like ivory, silver, or even gemstones were used... crafted by artisans.
Gradually, button production became industrialized and turned into a common consumer good in its simplest form. Button factories emerged and production diversified. Buttons were made from other materials like glass, polyester, ...
Today, there are many types of buttons, whether by shape, material, size...
Here’s a short video by Isaac Mizrahi that brilliantly traces the little history of the button (it’s in English, but don’t worry if you’re not fluent in Shakespeare’s language, there are subtitles).
Types of buttons
Classic or trendy, buttons offer a wide range of colors, materials, and shapes.
Although plastic is now the most widely used material in button production, there are many other materials to create beautiful buttons: mother-of-pearl, wood, metal, coconut, leather, rhinestones, glass, casein, etc.
Flat buttons
The flat buttons are the most common buttons in garment making. You’ll find them especially on shirts and blouses but also on coats, jackets...
The most common flat buttons have two or four holes drilled in the center. They are easy to sew and can even be sewn with a bit of originality for four-hole buttons.
These buttons come in many sizes but also shapes, including heart and flower shapes...
Image from the Petit Citron website
Shank buttons
Shank, stem, or ring buttons all have a protrusion in the center of their back that allows you to sew the button to the fabric. These buttons are most often used to close a coat or pants, but they are also starting to appear on lighter garments because they have a nice decorative look.
This type of button is a bit more difficult to sew than flat buttons. Indeed, during sewing, they tend to move (because of their shank).
Novelty buttons
There’s also a category of buttons I call novelty buttons. Often, they have fun shapes and allow you to customize a garment or accessory. Be careful when buying this type of button, as some are of poor quality.
How to choose the size of your button or buttonhole?
To create a buttonhole that fits your button, there’s a little formula to remember:
button diameter + its thickness = buttonhole size
It’s up to you to decide what comes first: the choice of button or the size of the buttonhole. I’ll admit that most of the time, I choose the buttons first and then create the buttonhole.
How to sew or resew a button
I’ll leave you with Vanessa Salaün who made us a great video, and as they say, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel.
Special case: reinforcing a heavily used button
There is a special technique for sewing jacket and coat buttons to ensure their durability over time (and believe me, I speak from experience). Nowadays, I also use this technique when sewing a button closure on a coat.
To do this, we’re going to sew not one but two buttons: the outer one (the classic) and a small flat button inside the coat. This will give your button a lot of strength.
There you go, I hope you've learned a bit more about buttons, a great haberdashery supply.
All that's left to do!
