Sewing Made Easier: Machine Sew on Buttons

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If you dread sewing on buttons, you may find it much easier to use your sewing machine. You'll need a Button Sewing foot for your machine, and on some machines a feed cover plate. The feed cover plate keeps the feed tracks from catching your fabric. You will also need a zig-zag stitch.

Mark where you need to place your buttons. If you're replacing a button, there may remain thread or signs on the garment where the button goes. If you're building a garment, place the opposite side of the garment over where the button will go and align properly. Using tailor's chalk, make a mark where your button should go.

You will need to bring the thread up through the hole on the feed cover. The button sewing foot sort of sets at the edge of the button, holding it in place. First set your stitch width to straight stitching, and your stitch length to 0. Set your needle position to the left. Now position the button under the foot and lower the shank to put the foot down on top of your button.

Lower the needle by using the hand crank into the left hole of the button. Turn the hand wheel toward you to raise the needle. Some prefer to stitch 3 to 4 stitches up and down at this point, as you do not have a knot.

With the needle raised above the foot, move the stitch width selector until the needle is over the right button hole. Lower the needle with the hand wheel. Check one more time by using the hand wheel to make sure the stitch width is correct. Adjust if necessary. Many prefer to then stitch about 6 stitches back and forth, or more.

Then you can optionally lower the needle in the right button hole, move the stitch width back to zero and the needle position selector to the right side and stitch up and down a few times to finish.

Cut the threads, and you're done! Sewing your buttons on by machine can save a number of steps compared to sewing by hand. If threading a needle is a task you dread, you only have to thread the needle once per color of thread for machine sewing a button. It's also far less likely that you'll poke your fingers with the needle when using the machine.

Singer even has videos of using a Button Sewing foot on their Presser Foot Support page . Also posted there is a PDF instruction file for the Button Sewing foot.

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