A missing button is the most common reason a perfectly good garment stops being worn, and it takes about four minutes to fix. The same is true of a loose snap, a split seam, and a hem that has come down.
Almost nobody does any of it any more, which is worth changing, because these are the easiest repairs there are.
Why buttons come off
Usually not because the button failed. The thread wore through, and it wore through because of friction against the buttonhole every time the garment was fastened and unfastened, plus abrasion in the wash and dryer.
Two things make it happen faster. Buttoning a shirt before washing it, which puts all the strain on the button and the hole while the garment tumbles. And the dryer, where hard buttons knock against the drum for forty minutes.
Leaving shirts unbuttoned in the wash and air drying anything with delicate buttons extends their life considerably.
Sewing a button back on
The whole job needs a needle, thread, and scissors.
Match the thread to the garment, and use all six strands of embroidery floss or doubled ordinary thread for anything that takes strain.
Mark the position before you start, using the impression left in the fabric and the position of the buttons above and below.
Knot the thread and come up from underneath so the knot hides on the wrong side.
The step most people miss: leave a shank. Place a toothpick or a matchstick across the top of the button and sew over it. When you remove it you have slack under the button, which is the space the fabric of the buttonhole side needs to sit. A button sewn flat against the fabric puts strain on the thread every time and pulls the placket out of shape.
Six passes through each hole is plenty. Then bring the needle up between the button and the fabric, wrap the thread around the slack three or four times to form the shank, and knot underneath.
Most shirts come with a spare button sewn inside a side seam, which people cut off and discard without noticing.
The other four-minute repairs
A split seam. Turn the garment inside out and backstitch along the original seam line, starting a centimetre before the split and finishing a centimetre past it. Small stitches, and go over the ends twice.
A fallen hem. A slip stitch, catching a single thread of the outer fabric each time so nothing shows on the right side. Hemming tape works and is a temporary fix, since it stiffens the hem and eventually comes away in the wash.
A loose snap or hook. Same approach as a button and usually faster, since the holes are small and the strain is lower.
A small hole in a knit. Duplicate stitch over it with matching yarn, following the existing stitch pattern. This is genuinely invisible when done carefully and it is easier than it sounds.
When something is not worth repairing
Worth being honest about.
Fabric that has thinned generally, meaning the whole garment is near the end rather than one point having failed.
A zip in a structured garment, which is a real job and usually worth paying for.
Anything where the repair will be visible on a garment whose whole purpose is to look sharp.
And felted wool, which is not a repair problem at all since the damage is to the fiber structure.
The kit worth keeping
Needles in a couple of sizes, thread in white, black, navy, and grey, small sharp scissors, safety pins, and a seam ripper.
Keep the spare buttons that come with garments in one small tin rather than in the garment, where they get lost.
That is the whole list and it covers almost everything that goes wrong.
Protecting repairs in the wash
A repair is only as durable as how the garment is treated afterwards.
Fasten hooks and snaps before washing so they do not catch on other items, and leave buttons undone so the strain stays off the buttonhole.
Use a mesh bag for anything with delicate fastenings.
Skip the dryer where you can for anything with hard buttons or applied decoration, since that is where most fastening damage happens.
The Durham part
Humidity here is worth a note because it affects thread and fabric rather than the repair itself.
Cotton thread absorbs moisture and swells, and repeated swelling and drying is part of what wears through the thread holding a button. In a humid climate that cycle runs harder, which is a small reason buttons come loose sooner here than in a dry one. Polyester thread does not absorb the same way and holds up considerably better, so it is the better choice for repairs in this climate even on a cotton garment.
The other local factor is storage. Anything repaired and then put away in a humid closet is subject to the same mildew risk as everything else, and a garment that has been sitting unworn because it needed a button has usually been sitting somewhere it should not have been. Worth airing it before the repair rather than after.
Starting from a cleaner garment
Most repairs go better on a clean garment, and a properly washed and fully dried item is easier to work with and holds a stitch better than one carrying detergent residue and mineral stiffness.
The machines at our self-service laundry on Guess Road move enough water per cycle to rinse residue out properly rather than dilute it, which is the difference between fabric that feels soft and fabric that feels stiff.
Our machines and the store are cleaned daily.
Nou wash-dry-fold service covers the everyday laundry when the week gets away from you.
The short version
Buttons come off because the thread wears through, not because the button failed, and washing shirts buttoned plus tumble drying are what accelerates it. When sewing one back on, leave a shank by sewing over a toothpick, since a button sewn flat strains the thread and distorts the placket. Split seams want a backstitch inside out, fallen hems want a slip stitch, and small holes in knits want a duplicate stitch. Use polyester thread rather than cotton, especially in a humid climate. Fasten hooks and leave buttons undone in the wash, and keep spare buttons in a tin rather than in the garment.
WaveMAX Durham is at 3222 Guess Road, easy to reach from Durham and the surrounding area. If you would rather hand over the washing, call us at 919-748-3180.