How to Finish Sewing a Bound Buttonhole

Once you have taken all the steps to prepare a bound buttonhole, it's time to finish sewing it. Like the preparation, this is a step you must not rush, for you want the finished product to be as perfect as you can manage.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

1. Cut a small piece of fabric and place it behind where you will be sewing the buttonhole. The fabric does not need to be perfectly square, but it should be larger than the size of the finished bound buttonhole.

2. Make sure your fabric is very flat when you finish sewing a bound buttonhole. You can do this by pressing it with your iron, or by putting four straight pins in the fabric: two on either side of the buttonhole's ends, and two along the buttonhole's length. Make sure you leave plenty of space around the buttonhole when you place the pins.

3. Put thread in your machine that as closely matches the color of the fabric as possible when you finish sewing a bound button hole. If you wish to make the button holes part of the garment's design, you can use contrasting thread that will make them stand out—this is a detail that is up to you to decide.

4. Lift the presser foot of your sewing machine, and place your fabric on the machine bed, lining it up so that the needle will progress down one side of the buttonhole's lengths. Make sure the fabric is straight, lower the presser foot, and begin sewing as you finish a bound buttonhole.

5. Sew the button hole slowly as you finish it, making sure the fabric is as straight as possible as it goes through the machine. When you reach the end of the length, turn the wheel that drives the pulley until the needle pieces the fabric, lift the presser foot and turn the fabric so that it will sew along the buttonhole's end. Lower the presser foot, and sew continue sewing until you reach the end, then lift the presser foot (after making sure the needle pierces the fabric), turn the fabric and begin sewing along the other length of the buttonhole. Remove the pins as you sew so the needle doesn't skip or go off the straight line you are trying to sew as you finish a bound buttonhole.

6. Continue sewing around the button hole until you reach the point where you began finishing the bound buttonhole. Sew a few stitches over what you have done, reverse the needle a few stitches, then carefully cut the thread, but leave the threads end long and remove the fabric from the machine.

7. Turn the fabric over, and carefully trim the small piece of fabric you placed behind the buttonhole in step one. Leave a portion of the fabric all the way around the stitching so you don't accidentally cut the stitching itself. This will ensure the stitching remains unaffected, and allow the fabric to help reinforce the buttonhole itself.

[theperfectfit]

on 1/23/2009 How about some pictures?