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Week 08 · Mend It

Tuesday

Sew on a button
// Buttons, laces and clothes that last
⏱ about 15 min

Tuesday: Sew on a button

Bennie the Bear holds up his favorite vest. One button is gone, and a little thread tail is left behind.

Hazel the Hedgehog finds a matching button in the basket. "Your grown-up threads the needle and ties the first knot. Then the sewing is yours."

Bennie looks nervous. Hazel smiles. "Up through the cloth, through a hole, down through the other hole. Up, down, up, down. That is all it is."

Before you start

Sewing on a button needs a grown-up beside you the whole time. The needle is sharp. The grown-up threads it and ties the first knot.

You will need the shirt, a matching button and thread. Also a needle in its case and a grown-up.

Match the button to the others on the shirt. Count the holes. Most buttons have two or four.

The steps

  1. Your grown-up threads the needle and ties a knot at the end of the thread.
  2. Hold the button on the spot where the old one was. Look for the thread tail.
  3. Push the needle up from under the cloth, through one button hole. Pull the thread all the way.
  4. Push the needle down through the next hole and through the cloth. Pull gently.
  5. Repeat up and down through the holes five or six times. Keep the button flat.
  6. Your grown-up ties the knot underneath and trims the thread.
  7. Put the needle back in its case right away.

For a four-hole button, sew two holes first, then the other two. Many people make an X or two straight lines.

Pull the thread snug, not tight. A button sewn too tight is hard to push through its buttonhole.

PUT THE BUTTON STEPS IN ORDER.
  • ?Grown-up threads the needle and ties a knot
  • ?Hold the button on the spot
  • ?Grown-up ties off, needle goes in its case
  • ?Needle up through the cloth and a button hole
  • ?Repeat five or six times
  • ?Needle down through the next hole and the cloth
WHY THIS EXERCISEEach step gets the next one ready. Thread, place, up, down, repeat, finish.
BUTTON SENSE
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
Who threads the needle?
How many times do you go up and down through the holes?
You are done sewing. Where does the needle go?
The thread should be pulled how?

No needle? Use a lacing card.

If a sharp needle is not right for you yet, practice with a lacing card. It teaches the same up and down motion.

Ask your grown-up to punch holes in a piece of thick paper or card. Use yarn and a large plastic needle, or tape the yarn tip.

Go up through one hole and down through the next, all the way around. That is sewing.

Most buttons have two or how many holes?
What do you use instead of a sharp needle on a lacing card?
Who ties the knot underneath when the sewing is done?
StatementTrue or false?
A child threads the needle alone.?
The button should sit flat while you sew.?
A lacing card teaches the same up and down motion.?
A needle can be left on the table when you finish.?
WHY THIS EXERCISESafe habits around needles let you mend for years without a single poke.
Bennie's vest button has a thread tail where the old button was. What does the tail show?
WHY THIS EXERCISEThe thread tail marks the right spot. The new button then lines up with its buttonhole.
Safety first
A grown-up threads the needle, ties the knots and stays beside you the whole time.
The needle goes back in its case the moment you stop. Pins stay in the cushion.
Not ready for a needle yet? Use the lacing card with a plastic needle.
For a grown-up
Thread a needle with about an arm's length of doubled thread and knot the end. Stay within reach.
Guide the first two stitches with your hand over your child's. Then let them lead.
A lacing card with yarn is a real win before a needle is right.

Up, down, up, down. You are a mender now, Helper! Tomorrow Hazel tackles laces and knots.

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