Mending Day Today....

Today was mending day at my house.  Or at least part of the day was mending day. My husband has two pairs of shorts that somehow lost buttons over the winter, even though he wasn't wearing them.  Things that make you go hmmmm!  I'm not sure how that even happened but that's ok.  I grabbed my supplies and stitched on buttons.  

I love that the nicer shorts have extra buttons stitched into the pocket lining (or elsewhere on or around the waistband) for times just like this.  

As a side note, I'm sorry my blog has been down for a month or so.  I have experienced some issues that I'm trying hard to resolve.  I'm working behind the scenes to try and come up with workable solutions.  Thanks for your patience!

What are you all stitching today?  Do you like to do mending?  Do you mend things at all?  Some people don't anymore.  I usually don't mind it if it's just a few things here and there.

Take care friends and happy stitching!!!

Cindy

The Buttonholes Are Finished.....and More......

Even though I had a yuck case of food poisoning last week, I still managed to finish this sweet little shirt. However, I did not iron it before we took the pictures. So ignore the wrinkles....but enjoy the sunshine....because we have not had much of it lately and therefore we had to wait for pictures.

I really do like this shirt. And fortunately, Elisabeth does too. I like the neckline and that it fits well and therefore is modest and just sweet. I also made her a fun little A-line skort to go with it. She has asked me not to make her skirts anymore unless I add the shorts underneath. I am fine with that.

And to this skort I even added hip pockets because every little girl has treasures to store....and my little girl is no exception!

Buttonholes......Part 2

Continuing on.....Let me start by saying - I can't tell you exactly how to make actual buttonholes on your sewing machine (unless yours is identical to mine). Different machines have different buttonhole feet, rules, requirements, etc. So if you are unsure, pull out your manual so you can learn exactly how best to use your machine. Your manual is your friend....cheesy, I know....but oh, so true!!!

And again, this may not be applicable to your machine...but it is on mine. The bobbin case on my machine requires different threading when doing buttonholes. It really isn't a requirement as the machine will make fine buttonholes without this step. But it makes even better buttonholes with this step. On my bobbin case there is this metal finger with a hole in it. The thread comes off the bobbin and is inserted through the finger and then placed in the bobbin compartment of the machine. This gives the final buttonhole a more rounded appearance on the top of the fabric.

Even though I am always ready to be finished with the buttonholes before I even start....I always make a test buttonhole first. This checks to make sure I have everything set up properly and gives me an opportunity to check and make sure the buttonhole is truly the correct size for the button. I use the same fabric and number of layers for the test buttonhole that was used for the garment. And I really do take one of the buttons and fit it through the buttonhole. Really.

Another thing I do, although you can't see it in any of these pictures.....I always use some sort of stabilizer. You can use the stabilizer that you buy in the stores....OR you can be bad like me and just use plain paper or even a paper towel. Honestly, I always have scrap paper by my sewing machine and generally, I just grab a piece of it and "float" it under my fabric which is under my buttonhole foot and on top of the feed dogs. You can pin it if it doesn't want to stay put...but just remember to keep the pins away from any of the sewing action. Yes, I realize that paper can dull my needle quicker....but I really think adding the stabilizer is worth it because a buttonhole made with it will be so much better and generally won't "tunnel" or look all wonky.

Ok, now we are really ready to begin...using the Wonder Tape as a guide for the placement of the buttonhole presser foot, we will start stitching. This tape is such a wonderful tool because it really helps place the buttonholes so they are all consistently placed from the edge. I place the back edge of my presser foot right up against the front edge of the Wonder Tape. The Wonder Tape is completely hidden under my presser foot or I would have shown you a picture.

So, I am going to go ahead and make all of my buttonholes......five of them on this top. I try my best to make all of them at one sitting, if possible.

Here is the finished buttonhole and you can see the placement tape.

Here I have removed the tape.

Now you need to open the buttonholes so they are functional. I just use my scissors but you must be careful. I fold the buttonhole in half and making sure my scissors are only on the fabric inside the buttonhole I make a small clip.

Then I unfold the fabric and further open the buttonholes. I place the tips of my scissors into the buttonhole and carefully snip into the corners. You can also place a straight pin at each edge to keep you from cutting too far into the corner of the buttonhole. I forgot to demonstrate that here for you. I also don't use Fray Check on my buttonholes...but I know that some do.

Next we need to mark the placement for the buttons. Over the years the best way I have found to do this is to layer the back facings of the shirt. In the above picture the back edge facings are directly on top of each other with right sides of the shirt together. (Can you see that my buttonholes ran off of my facing....not good!!! But that is why I make prototypes....so I can correct these things in the next versions.) After stacking the facings I use a blue water soluble marker and poke through each buttonhole to the other side of the shirt where the buttons will be.

Then you'll have a wonderful mark all ready for your button. Works perfect every time!!!

Next, I re-use each piece of Wonder Tape to hold each button while I secure it on with the sewing machine. I posted about that here awhile ago.

And ta-da....that is it. I know this seems like it took me forever....but in actuality......the whole deal from starting up until I am tying off the threads from my buttons only takes me 30 minutes or less. But just remember, I have been doing this for awhile and this is my process. If you are trying to follow any directions that are not familiar to you it will take you longer until it becomes your norm. So don't get discouraged!!!

Hopefully I can get a finished picture of the top on Elisabeth later today.

I hope that you found this buttonhole tutorial helpful. And like I mentioned at the beginning, my way isn't the only way or even the "right" way I am sure. But it has worked for me over all these years....and if it helps you out in any way....even better!!!! If you have any thoughts or questions let me know and I will do my best to answer them.

However, I do ask that you not copy my information. Using the knowledge for your personal sewing is one thing....but please do not steal my information and then turn around and try to profit from it. If you like what you see here, feel free to refer people to my blog. I really do enjoy blogging....but I have been burned by some thoughtless and unsavory people along the way. If that continues it will limit my future ability to offer helpful tips and techniques. So I appreciate your respect and common courtesy. Thank you!!! Now....get busy stitching!!!!

Buttonholes......Part 1

Let me start by saying buttonholes are not so difficult that it requires a multi-part lesson. However, in order for me to put this together with four little ones under foot...including a baby...it quickly became apparent I would have to break it down into smaller portions for my benefit.

Everyone seems to have their favorite way of making buttonholes (and for some - avoiding buttonholes) and I am no exception. Fortunately, to my knowledge, there is no 100% correct way. I am sure my way isn't perfect for everyone but it has evolved over 30+ years of sewing for myself and others. I have learned tricks and tips here and there through trial and error and now I will share them with you.

The top in the picture above is designed to button up the back. So I first check to make sure the left and right sides are equal so that the buttons/buttonholes will look right once completed. Fortunately, they do look even...so I continue on. If they did not, I would head back to the sewing machine with my seam ripper and make both sides even by adjusting the hem.

Also I should mention that I will apply my buttonholes to the right side of the top back and then sew the buttons to the left side. People seem to feel pretty strongly about which side they apply buttonholes. You can make that decision for yourself. I mentioned my thoughts here several years ago.

Next, I pull out my Simflex sewing gauge and decide how many buttonholes I desire. At first I thought I wanted four buttonholes....but the distance would have been 3 1/2" in between buttonholes so I decided to increase the buttonhole number to five to decrease the spacing. I usually put my top buttonhole approx. 1/2" down from the top edge. In the case of this top, I want to center the buttonhole on the contrasting band and it just so happens that is at the 1/2" mark anyway. After I determine the spacing, I either make a small dot with a blue water soluble marker or place a pin at the exact spot. In this case, I used the pins.

If you don't have a Simflex, and I did not for many years, then I mark the top buttonhole about 1/2" down from the top edge and then I mark the desired placement of the bottom buttonhole. Then after deciding how many buttonholes you want in between, just divide to determine the placement of the remaining buttonholes.

Just a closer picture of the pins. The pins are equally spaced on this top even though the pictures may make you think otherwise.

Then I pull out my Wonder Tape and cut one small piece per buttonhole. Any thin 1/4" wide tape would work. I use the Wonder Tape because I have it and therefore it is easy. Plus I will be able to re-use it when I sew on the buttons.

I place the edge of the tape along the edge of the fabric where I want the buttonhole to be. This tape will help me make each buttonhole the same distance from the finished edge.

When I am working on this alone I do all this prep work while sitting at my sewing machine. And I only cut one piece of Wonder Tape and use it the entire time. For example, I will measure and make the placement with pins/marker....and then I use a small piece of tape for the first buttonhole. After I make the buttonhole I lift up the tape and move it to make the next buttonhole, and so on and so forth. Does that make sense? Basically this tape is expensive and it can be lifted and reused if you are careful.

Next I further mark the buttonhole placement before I remove the pins. I take a pen and draw an arrow on the tape pointing exactly where the buttonhole should be based on the pin marking. Now you can remove the pins.

Ok, I know this sounds like it must take forever....but I promise you.....had I not been taking pictures I would have had this entire shirt marked up to this point in less than 2 minutes. Like I said before, I usually do all of this while sitting at the sewing machine. Are you all still with me?

Stay tuned because I will be back soon to finish.....until then....Happy Stitching!!!