Buttonhole Fun

The title of this post would keep about 99.9% of the population from exploring further, but for those of you that think that  buttonholes have the potential for expressing some creativity then read on!
 It is a snowy, cold day here on the shores of Lake Superior. It seems like the perfect day to try a fun technique!

Aerial Lift Bridge   Duluth, MN

 I have some "real" sewing I should be doing today but it is Friday, and I want a little fun, so here is a tutorial that may prompt you to think of buttonholes in a new way.

 How about a round bound buttonhole? Here are some photos of one I made today. I am using some denim scraps to show this technique.

Apply tricot interfacing to the wrong side of the fabric, and pin a piece of lining fabric  under the fashion fabric right sides together

Trace a circle of the desired dimension on the wrong side of the fabric. I am using a large vintage button as a template. The buttonhole I am making is for a smaller button.

Using Small Stitches sew on the traced circle

Leave a 1/4" seam allowance and then carefully clip up to the stitching at 1/8" intervals

Pull the lining through the hole  to the  wrong side, and carefully press until you have a nice, round opening.

 

Choose a contrasting fabric, and make some narrow piping. I am using stripes cut on the bias

Cut two pieces of the fashion fabric, and two pieces of lining

Sew the piping to one edge of each square on the right side of the fabric.

Sew the lining pieces onto the squares right sides together sewing right on top of the stitching that attached the piping.

Baste the two "lips " together so that they line up in an attractive way

Using an adhesive such as Steam a Seam cut some strips and lightly steam them around the faced hole on the wrong side of the fabric

Center the hole over the "lips" and using steam set the adhesive so that they are secure

Lift the top layer of fabric until you see the original row of stitching that formed the round hole. Using short stitches sew right on top of that stitching

Remove hand basting threads and you have a unique bound buttonhole!

A buttonhole like this looks really interesting with a vintage button!

A winter afternoon lends itself to playing around with fabric! This tutorial shows that there is no limit to the ways that we can adapt our skills to create new details in our sewing.
 One unique buttonhole could be the focal point on a jacket. Here is another unique buttonhole that I posted previously on the blog.   http://villagedressmaker.blogspot.com/2012/12/kooky-bound-buttonhole.html
 Have fun with details, and I'd love to see photos if any of you are interested enough to devote an hour or two to unique buttonholes!