How to sew a button with a thread shank
A button that doesn't pull.
Step by step
- Mark through the buttonhole.
- Use double knotted thread.
- Lay a toothpick on the button and sew over it 5 or 6 times.
- Remove it, lift the button and wind thread round the stitches 4 or 5 times.
- Finish on the wrong side.
Watch
How to hand sew a button making a thread shank (6:49)
By Positively Jane · Open on YouTube
Chosen from its title and channel: a 6-minute video from Positively Jane on the same topic as this guide. Embedded from YouTube with credit; we don't host it. It only loads when you press play.
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Sources
All checked 1 November 2026. We read these; we did not test the products ourselves.