button bracelet tutorial

Materials and tools you'll need:

assorted buttons

embroidery floss, waxed cord, thin twine

(any sturdy thread that is small enough to fit through button holes will work)

scissors

something to measure your floss

nail polish (optional but helpful)

super glue (also optional)

Choose the buttons that you want on your bracelet.

For a single strand bracelet, you'll need 9 to 14 buttons.

The number varies with how big your buttons are

and how long you want the finished bracelet to be.

Choose what you're going to thread the buttons on.

I used embroidery floss for this bracelet.

You'll want enough thread to have some extra at the end,

so measure and cut a piece that is 30-36 inches long.

If the thread you're using is prone to fraying,

coat the ends with nail polish.

When the polish is almost dry, twist the floss to make a nice point.

This is optional, but it makes the whole project significantly easier.

While the nail polish on the ends of your floss is drying,

arrange your buttons in the order you want them to be on the bracelet.

Fold the floss in half.

Find the button you want to use last,

and tie an overhand knot in the floss

 On one side of the knot

there should be a loop that the button will fit through snugly

and on the other side should be two evenly long "tails" of floss.

Now thread the first button onto your floss.

There are two ways of doing this with two-holed flat buttons.

You can thread both "tails" of floss through both holes

like in the photo above.

Or you can thread one "tail" through the holes

and leave the other loose on the back.

I find that this second method works better for me;

the buttons seem to do better at facing outward

when the finished bracelet is on your wrist.

Tie overhand knots in the floss between each button

to keep them from sliding around too much.

You can also use shank buttons (above)

or four-holed flat buttons (below).

Continue stringing buttons onto your floss

until your bracelet is as long as you want it.

Tie a square knot after threading the last button onto the floss.

Trim the "tails" of floss

so that they don't peek out from behind the last button.

Add a dab of super glue to your square knot

to ensure that your bracelet doesn't come apart.

(Once again, this step is optional.)

Here is the back of the finished bracelet.

And this is the front.

Super-cute, right?

This blue bracelet is made of vintage buttons,

but you can also use all new buttons

or a mixture of the two.

Experiment with adding some beads.

Make some bracelets extra long

so that you can wrap them around your wrist

two or three times before slipping the last button through the loop.

Try using different types of thread.

Layer multiple bracelets

that are in complementary color schemes.

Put together one or two

or go overboard creating a rainbow

of button bracelet looks.

Happy button bracelet making!