Buttoned Up

I never cared much about buttons. I never noticed them or bothered with them. I would get annoyed when extras came with a sweater and I had to find a place to store it. I didn’t find them interesting or at all important. I was seriously ‘meh’ on buttons.

Then I started buying cardigans. Lots of them. And suddenly I started noticing buttons! This probably has more to do with the fact that stores began getting creative with buttons and realized that at sweater, with a more unique set of buttons looked much snazzier than plain, old flat ones.

I get annoyed when I see an otherwise beautiful sweater ruined by blah buttons. I start thinking about how much better it would look with pretty pearl, enamel or brass. So rather than pass over the sweaters I liked, I started buying my own buttons and replacing them (the same goes for coats and blouses.) I would snip the extra button out of the shirt and go to the craft store and find buttons of similar sizing to replace them with. Most blouses and cardigans hold a standard 8 buttons and most buttons can be bought in twos or threes, I always end up with an extra button just in case.

If you feel the need, you can take the new buttons and sweater to a local dry cleaner or seamstress and they can replace the buttons for you but I’m a firm believer that if you can do something for yourself, you should. So, unless it’s a heavy material that requires special needles, you can probably do this for yourself in around half an hour. I don’t profess to be good with a needle and thread and I can still manage to secure a button.

Most buttons cost starting at about $1.00 a pack and up to $8.00 a pack (Check out Jo Ann Fabrics), and I’m sure more depending on what you’re buying. Service at most dry cleaners to have the buttons switched would cost about $15.00.

A little extra time and money can easily update a sweater you don’t wear anymore (as in this ambitious case) or add a unique and personalized twist to a mass produced sweater that fits well.

Links:
How to sew on buttons
Buy Buttons