Tips and Tricks: The Covered Button

It should come as no surprise that I am a fan of the covered button.  With the many challenges that come with finding that perfect button for a project, the covered button creates an easy solution – use your fashion fabric, and it is sure to match back beautifully to whatever you may be making.  And they are the perfect companion to a set of bound buttonholes!

First off, I will say that button kits with the mold and pusher have never worked for me.  Someone must be having a level of success with the kits because they keep selling them, but my fabric always shifts and getting the back piece on with the pusher sends the whole thing flying across the table.

Instead, I use the button forms that have serrated edges or teeth that catch the fabric until the back piece is snapped into place.  These kits have the added appeal of not needing any tools, so you will never buy the refill kit only to find that you do not have the proper sized mold, or can’t find the darn thing.

[Just be aware that some some thick fabrics are unsuitable for these kits.  Using a plastic ring and a bit of batting, you can rig up your own base - just remember to create a shank with your thread when sewing the button to your garment!] 

Super thin or sheer fabrics can also cause problems – the metal of the form shows through the weave and creates a shiny/cheap look.  But there is a solution!

After glaring repeatedly at the shine-through of my covered buttons on this jacket, I decided to do something about the problem – because there was no way I was going to give up on them completely.

A quick application of a lightweight fusible interfacing covers and blocks the metal from shining through the weave of your fabric.  Yes, it is that simple!  Not to mention an excellent way to use up all those scraps of fabric and interfacing.  

The idea came to me after struggling with two layers of fabric shifting as I tried to catch those two layers in the teeth of the button form.

For super lightweight or light colored fabrics, two layers of fabric stuck together with a double sided fusible also works (I use Steam-a-Seam2).  I believe this is usually found in the quilting section and generally used for appliqué work.

An added benefit is that the extra body you have added to the fabric scraps makes it easier to tuck all of those edges in and keep the edges from fraying.

And that trick with the pencil eraser mentioned in the instructions . . . it really does work.  Instead of my fingernails being chewed up by the metal prongs, the eraser takes all of the abuse!

Speaking of reading directions . . . if your backs do not want to click into place, use the suggested spool of thread - but make sure you pad the area you are pushing down on or your button will lose its dome shape and flatten out in the center!

What are your thoughts on covered buttons?  Do you think they are worth the extra trouble or do you avoid them like the plague?