How to Sew a Button
A simple repair that everyone should know how to do.
This post is part of Repair Month, a series dedicated to taking better care of stuff instead of buying more of it. Join the discussion thread here.
When it comes to repairing your clothes, the hardest part is often finding five minutes in your day to focus on it. For the last year, I’ve had a jacket hanging in my closet that’s missing a top button. I couldn’t be bothered to figure out how to sew it back on myself, and taking it to the dry cleaner or running crying to my mom was too embarrassing. So it just sat there, taunting me.
Finally, I decided it was high time I figured this sh*t out. All I was missing was a needle and thread. Last weekend, I happened to be staying at a hotel in Dublin that provided a free sewing kit, and I threw it in my suitcase on the way home. You can easily get one, though, at a pharmacy, or maybe you should go see your mom…
Overwhelmed by the number of YouTube videos and how-to guides out there, I asked Naomi Mishkin of Naomi Nomi, which sells the perfect button-up shirt, if she could help me cut through the noise. She was such a fountain of knowledge last year when I asked her about tailoring, and I know she includes a “How to Sew a Button” guide with every purchase of her brand’s beautiful spares. What she sent me (below) is above and beyond: an updated version of her guide with clear instructions and illustrations to share with you all as well. WE ARE NOT WORTHY!!!
On Friday morning, after I’d had my java, I pulled out the jacket, sat down with my lil sewing kit, and opened Naomi’s instructions.
The process truly could not have been more straightforward, and it was a nice break from my phone/computer, too. The final result is not as neat as Naomi’s, but that doesn’t matter. In five minutes, I fixed a problem I’ve had for a year!
Thank you so much, Naomi, for your help. You guys can do it, too, I promise!!! Visit the Naomi Nomi website for more info, and get one of her shirts while you’re at it. 👍
It turns out I have been sewing buttons wrong my whole life. Time to fix my “technique”, thanks! Naomi's designs are precious.
learned how to do this in home ec in 7th grade (do they still have home ec?!)