Does anyone here sew around their knitted button holes to define or reinforce them better? I was looking at buttonhole stitch on sewing sites but I don’t know if it would work on a knitted garment in yarn or thread. Just wondering because on the buttonhole band I just finished on a cardigan the holes aren’t that obvious.
Button Holes
Hiya
How many stitches wide were the buttonholes? If you were just working the small ‘eyelet’ sort, then they won’t show up much. Are you looking to have an embroidered sort of effect?
You could work a blanket stitch effect around them but the best buttonholes I’ve ever come across are the ones by Maggie Righetti. I’ve worked them in two, three and four-stitch widths and have used them for ‘duffle’ type buttons. They’re a one-row buttonhole and I don’t bother making any other sort now.
Here’s a link:http://www.knittingonthenet.com/learn/bh5.htm
Best thing is to knit up a little swatch to practice first.
All the Best
I’ve re-inforced mine with either plied yarn or matching emb floss. In one instance I made a cardi for my elderly father and the buttonholes needed to be more obvious for his aging eyes and fingers. Also, it sometimes helps just to make them more sturdy.
cam
I was doing a two stitch button hole in k2p2 rib, but I finished it quite late one night. When casting on the two stitches for the “top” of the button hole I think I messed it up so now I have an extra thread of yarn in there to get stuck on the button! They aren’t that obvious anyway. Thinking about unpicking it and redoing it, but have to psych myself up to that
Ooo - that sounds so familiar.
If there’s only the one buttonhole you’re not happy with, I’d have a think about undoing and knitting the whole toot again.
You could try this:-
Look closely at the loose thread and if it seems long enough, then snip it in the middle and put each end to the back - inside - of the garment. If you’re handy with a needle, secure each end at the back with small but firm stitches. If you’re using an Aran weight wool, it should be possible to secure each end with yarn that you’ve spliced into two from the ball.
It’s also possible to use fabric glue to secure the two halves of the loose thread but I prefer to stitch them down.
Hope this helps.
Ellie