My husband lost a button off of his work shirt. So, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to show you all how to sew on a button. "Sew on a button! That's child's play", you might say. Well, not for everyone. My brother in law told me that he can sew on a button. However, the last button that he sewed on ended up in the wrong place. This article is being written for begineers, but maybe a practiced sewer can learn something too.

I will need a seam ripper, scissors, a straight pin, thread and a needle.

This shirt has extra buttons on the inside bottom of the placket. The plackets are the part of the shirt where the buttons and button holes are. The seam ripper is used to carefully cut the button loose. You don't want to push the ripper thru the fabric and make a hole. If you pull the button back you can see the threads, and slide the ripper in behind them.

Place the two sides of the shirt next to each other so that the existing buttons and button holes line up. Mark the place where this button needs to be sewn with a straight pin.

I chose a tapestry needle for this job. It has a large size hole and it's not too long. I also chose a thread that I already had, which is closest to the color used to sew the existing buttons on.

First I cut a piece of thread one yard long. That may seem too long for this job, but I will fold it in half, and then thread both ends thru the needle. Then fold it in half again and knot all four threads together. Now the thread seems just the right size, doesn't it?

The buttons on this shirt have four holes and are sewn on with an X stitch. So, to get started I insert the needle thru the back of the placket just above the pin and to the right of center for the button. Then go thru the top right hole of the button from the back and the thru the lower left hole from the front and back thru the placket. Leave the threads loose so that you can move the button around while you get it in the right place.

Now you should be on the inside of the placket. Go straight up to the point that is even with the knot and go thru the placket and the button hole on the top left side, and down thru the open hole on the bottom right, so that you can make an X. Now that you have your button placement stable, pull the threads tight. First the bottom part of the X, then the top part of the X. You can use your needle to tug on the top part. That will tighten the bottom part. Then pull the top part by pulling your needle. Make a few more X's pulling the thread tight as you go this time.

When that is done and you are on the inside of the placket, push your needle carefully thru the two lines of stitches that formed on the back side of the X. Do this about three times to end off your work. Cut the thread close, being careful not to cut any of your stitches.

Wow! You just sewed on your first button. Congratulations! I knew you could do it.

I always like to press the garment after any repair work. Wrinkles happen while you're working. Pressing just makes the job look finished and professional.

Enjoy your sewing projects, and look for more sewing tip hubs in the future.

Thanks for reading,

Sundance

PS: Can you guess which button I just sewed on?

The second one from the bottom.