Through this article, I would like to invite you to pay a little more attention to a very specific object.
This object is the button, because its history is closely linked to that of fashion and particularly men's clothing .
Buttons ? It was better before...
In France, in the 13th century, the corporation of buttonmakers, tablet makers and goldsmiths produced all kinds of these jewels that the wealthy snapped up to show off their wealth. In order to temper the ardor of coquettish lords, laws of the time even went so far as to limit the number of precious buttons that a nobleman could wear on a piece of clothing. Until the end of the 19th century, the button remained an essentially masculine accessory. In the locker room next door, the women's clothes have laces that adjust more easily.
Today, buttons are the poor relations of ready-to-wear brands . They are systematically made of synthetic materials and often poorly installed. Take the test. Walk into Zara , Uniqlo , or even Sandro , grab a piece of clothing and observe: the buttons are of average quality at best. Generally speaking, even the most beautiful pieces from these brands, those made with good quality fabrics, have buttons of little interest.
Through this article, I will teach you how to sew a button properly and sustainably. In addition to being able to repair any popped items in an instant, you will be able to personalize your favorite clothes by choosing the most suitable buttons.
How to sew a button?
Grab the sewing kit you invested in after reading the essential article on invisible hems . Equipped with a needle, thread a doubled thread no longer than your arm and finish with a knot linking the two ends.
Doubling the wire gives it greater strength
Stitch on the wrong side, on the other side where the button is to be attached, pull the thread until the knot comes up against the fabric. Reminder: the right side of a fabric is its noblest part, the one that is visible, the reverse is, on the contrary, the interior part.
Pass the needle through the first hole in the button and insert it into a second hole.
Then stitch on the right side, trying to bring out the needle at the knot on the other side.
Be careful not to pull excessively on the thread or you risk pressing the button against the fabric, which would no longer leave room to button the buttonhole. Leave a space equal to the thickness of the fabric to avoid this pitfall. A satisfactory technique is to place a match between the fabric and the button which is removed at the end of the process.
In the same way, poke again and again. The technique is not very complicated. It's just a matter of making sure you go through all the holes in the button and always keeping the right space between the button and the fabric. After around ten stitches - variable quantity depending on the material and weight - the button is sufficiently well hooked to have a good lifespan.
You can choose to make an "x" sign like in the picture (cross-sewn button) or, if you like to take risks and put yourself in danger, a "=" sign
There is only one small step left to do: pass one last time through a hole and, rather than going through the fabric once again, wrap your thread around the previous passages, tightening as much as possible so that it forms a whole. compact - see diagram above. Once you have made 4 or 5 turns around the threads, stitch from the right side and bring the needle out well at the initial knot.
Finish with a back stitch, as explained in the article on blind hems which is worth mentioning again. Cut the excess thread close to the knot.
In the case of a fabric with lining , it is possible to avoid having to go through the interior fabric by stitching the place under the button and instantly bringing out the needle. The trick that makes this easy is to pinch the fabric under the button. The first stitch is stitched from the right side so that the knot is between the button and the fabric but the procedure remains the same.
Variation for sewing on a button without piercing the lining underneath. Example on a pretty tweed.
Buy new buttons to sew them on
If your style is already based on strong pieces enhanced by solid basics, take it to the next level and upgrade your favorite clothes to give them a second wind.
Imagine what would be best in terms of color and material and get started! This is the opportunity to buy pieces of real horn for your duffle coat or to match the reflection of the buttons on your Egyptian cotton shirt to the color of your flannel pants.
Pretty horn buttons look great
to a slightly rough coat or jacket.
If you are in a big city, you can find shops that only sell buttons (= specialized haberdashery stores). The choice is wide enough to find the buttons of your dreams in Italian mother-of-pearl or superhero bone. You can also find what you are looking for in flea markets or other consignment sales. Otherwise, go to your village haberdashery, you will have plenty to choose from.
Finally, you can always order on the internet here but it is a shame to have to pay shipping costs which can become significant compared to such small amounts.
For Parisians, an excellent boutique is located in the famous fabric district in Pigalle. At DAM Boutons , rue d'Orsel (Pigalle metro station), you can find absolutely everything you want in terms of diameter, material and color of buttons.
Anthology of shelves at DAM Boutons - there are about ten like that
For my part, I found some copper shank buttons to replace the shiny plastic holed buttons on my Monoprix pea coat. This is a coat model from the fall winter 2011 season that was very successful in terms of cut and material, but whose buttons lacked originality.
I swapped the buttons on the right for those on the left at 2.5 euros each
at DAM Boutons (at this price we are talking about great luxury)
I wanted to remind you of the colors of my many shoes and leather accessories. There was the possibility of taking leather buttons altogether but I preferred to rack my brains for the delirium:
- the shape and color is that of the buttons made of braided leather strips,
- the material is metal to maintain a military note that evokes the origins of the pea coat.
Now that you know the true value of buttons, avid readers beware. Be careful not to fall into the excesses of fibulanophilia. Silver, gold, mother-of-pearl, rock crystal, jet and ivory are all precious materials which can constitute a real treasure for which you could end up being attacked without warning .
The War of the Buttons, 1962 film.
