Sew Wrong

How to Open a Buttonhole


Successfully open button holes on my Beignet skirt, woo hoo!

I think I’ve finally conquered buttonholes. Well…at least opening them nicely. I may not have an automatic buttonhole stitch feature on my sewing machine, like on my mom’s Bernina Virtuoso (definitely looking for that when I upgrade machines), but I can get a clean, professional opening with a couple of simple tools.  I wrote awhile ago about some of my favorite sewing accessories and included a buttonhole cutter in the roundup; it really is a great tool to have.

What makes a difference is using a block of wood and a mallet/hammer to really drive the cutter through the fabric.  Before, I was using the little cutting mat that comes with the set and wiggling the cutter back and forth through the layers of fabric.  The results were ok, but I still had to use my seam ripper to open the holes a bit.  Watch this quick six-second clip to see how I open my buttonholes now:


See how easy?  Just place the wooden block under your fabric, insert the button hole cutter in-between the stitching, and give it a couple of wacks with your mallet – open buttonhole perfection

After opening up the buttonhole, I snip some of the loose fibers with some sharp scissors and finish the buttonhole edges with clear nail polish, a little trick I learned from my mom.  It dries clear and doesn’t discolor fabric like Fray Check can, plus it doesn’t wash out.


I've mastered buttons!!

I’m quite happy with how my buttonholes turned out on a successful second version of my Beignet skirt!

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Beignet Skirt Buttons Are a Bitch


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I never really liked making buttonholes – maybe it’s because my machine doesn’t do the greatest job at stitching them.  If it’s one buttonhole for a skirt or pair of pants, I don’t really mind.  But when it comes to 12 buttonholes going down the front of a garment, like a button-down shirt or this skirt, for example, I cringe.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my sewing machine: a Bernina 1005 that my mom gave to me (it was used in a home ec class at a local high school – someone etched the band “Slip Knot” on to the side of the machine).  It gets the job done when it comes to sewing up garments, but I guess I’m spoiled because I know what it’s like to sew on a really really nice machine like my mom’s Bernina, which makes an automatic buttonhole.  My machine isn’t computerized, so I’m dependant on cranking the buttonhole knob and sewing my buttonhole step by step, with the risk of sewing the buttonhole too long or making too many stitches for the bar tack.  I also don’t have a buttonhole foot for my machine so I can’t easily see what I’m sewing.  It’s like inserting an invisible zipper without an invisible zipper foot (which I’ve done, and it’s not fun).

So needless to say, I don’t like sewing buttonholes.  I made a practice buttonhole, thought it turned out ok, and then proceeded to start stitching them up on my Beignet.  Here’s the results so far:


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Not the greatest looking buttonholes, sadly..  But eeeek, I cut the stitching!!  See where my thumb is?  Using my buttonhole cutter, I managed to slice through the stitching when I was cutting open the hole.  My guess is that I stitched my buttonhole beading too close together.  The top buttonhole is in the same state, too.  I’m wondering if I should dab on some Fray Chek and move on or try and stitch it again?

And then of course, my thread ran out on the third one.  Ugh.  Buttonholes are a bitch.

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