How to Sew a Four Hole Button
Learning to sew a button is a life skill. It makes it possible to quickly mend your clothing when a button pops off, helping your wardrobe to last longer and saving you from spending money at a tailor. Plus, if you find buttons that you like even better than the ones already on a garment in your closet – you can remove the old buttons and replace them with new, more fashionable buttons!
4-hole buttons are one of the most common types of button, often used in shirts and blouses. It’s a great place to start when learning to sew buttons.
Supplies
- Garment or other project in need of a button
- 4-hole button
- Hand sewing needle
- Thread similar in color to the garment
- Scissors or thread snips
How to Sew a Four Hole Button
Start by marking the button placement on the fabric. You can use a fabric marking tool or a regular pencil for this.
Next, thread a hand sewing needle with a double layer of thread and knot the tails together with a double or triple knot.
Hold the button on the button placement mark, on the outside of the garment. Push the needle up from the inside of the garment, going through one of the holes in the button.
Pull the thread taut so that the knot is firmly against the back of the fabric.
Push the needle back down through the fabric, going through the hole directly opposite the hole the thread is emerging from.
Next, push the needle back up through the fabric, going through one of the two remaining holes with no thread through them.
Pull the thread taut, then push the needle back down through the hole directly opposite the one the thread is coming from. This will be the last remaining hole with no thread.
Repeat this pattern 4 to 5 times, sewing an “X” shape across the holes in the button.
On the last stitch, instead of pushing the needle back down through the fabric, push it through the hole in the button, angling the needle out so that it comes out between the button and the fabric.
Wrap the thread around the stitches below the button 5 or 6 times. This will hold the button out away from the fabric a bit, making it easier take the button in and out of a buttonhole.
Finally, push the needle through to the back of the fabric underneath the button. Knot the thread tails on the back, trim them, dot them with a bit of fray check, and you are finished!