Sewing a Button Using Backstitch

1Kinds of buttons

• Two-hole and four-hole buttons have holes right through them. They are the most common, on shirts, blouses and uniforms.
• Shank buttons have a small loop underneath instead of holes. They are often found on coats.

This lesson shows a four-hole button. A two-hole button is sewn the same way, with only one pair of holes.

2What you need

• A needle thin enough to pass through the holes of the button.
• Strong thread in a colour that matches the other buttons, used double (both ends knotted together).
• The button, and the piece of clothing.
• A spacer: a matchstick, a toothpick or a pin.
• Scissors, and chalk or a pencil to mark the spot.

3Why leave a gap under the button?

When you fasten a shirt, the cloth around the buttonhole must fit between the button and the shirt. If the button is sewn tight against the cloth, it is hard to fasten and the thread soon breaks. So we sew over a spacer, and then wind the thread into a little stalk called a shank.

4Step by step

1. Find and mark the spot. Close the shirt and look for the place under the buttonhole, or for the old holes and bits of thread. Mark it with a small chalk or pencil cross.
2. Fix the thread with backstitch. Knot your double thread. From the front, take a tiny stitch at the mark, then make two tiny backstitches on the same spot. The button will hide them, and they hold the thread much more firmly than a knot alone.
3. Put on the button and the spacer. Push the needle up through one hole of the button. Lay the matchstick across the top of the button, between the holes. Take the needle down through the next hole, over the matchstick.
4. Sew through the holes. Go up and down through the same pair of holes four to six times, then do the same with the other pair. You can make two parallel bars or a cross; copy the other buttons on the shirt.
5. Make the shank. Bring the needle up between the button and the cloth, but not through the button. Pull out the matchstick and lift the button gently. Wind the thread tightly round the stitches under the button three or four times.
6. Finish with backstitch. Push the needle through to the back of the cloth. Make two or three small backstitches on top of each other, right under the button, then cut the thread, leaving a short tail.

5Check your work

• Does the button line up with its buttonhole?
• Does it fasten easily, and does it feel firm when you pull it gently?
• Are the stitches on the back small and neat?

No shirt to mend yet? Practise on a scrap of thick cloth, with a big button or a bottle top that an adult has pierced with two holes.

Try it yourself

Try each one first, then tap Show answer to check.