I recently visited my friend Cathy. I hadn’t been to her beautiful lake home before and I enjoyed the view, as well as all of her lovely quilts, and the wonderful furniture made by her very talented husband Tom.
In the dining room she had a small table with an odd tool attached to it. I stared for a few minutes and finally had to ask “what is it?”
Do you know?
It’s a covered button maker. It’s actually called a Hand Press, and you can purchase one online for anywhere from $60 – $200. I’m so glad Cathy showed me how it works and then loaned it to me to play with (thanks Laura for helping me carry it to the car 😊).
I’ve made covered buttons before, but the tools involved were this kit from Dritz and a hammer!
Cathy pulled out the box with the blanks for all the different sized buttons, and the press dies
And made a button before our eyes:
And voila… a covered button!
I’ve made quite a few covered buttons when garment sewing. This is one of my favorite vests. The buttons are only for decoration, but it was fun to stitch the design from the vest onto the fabric before making them.
I’m looking forward to doing a bit of playing with the press on my current challenge quilt. Thanks Cathy!!!
Have you ever made covered buttons? Do you have a story you’d like to share… with pictures?
Debbie H. says
Yes….I’ve used this type of press in my upholstery days. It’s an amazing tool. Thanks for sharing, Chris!
Marcia Singer says
Certainly better than doing it by hand and never getting it right – pleats and hanging threads, etc.
Barb says
WOW
Jo Oberfoell says
That tool would have been very helpful when making all the small covered buttons (50)for the back and sleeves of daughters wedding dress a few years ago.
Julie says
Loved the vest & & the covered buttons. So detailed to repeat the leaves on the buttons! Wow!
Sandra says
Looks like Waterville Lake to me? Hi to Cathy….