Chapter 7. Simple button making

In this chapter I looked at making samples of 3D shapes which would make potential buttons and help me construct my own designed shapes later. I selected a range of core shapes for my buttons  and then fabrics with which to cover them

I also made some Dorset Buttons and whilst looking at traditional methods also had fun experimenting and with more unusual techniques.

In the third part of this chapter I had fun with toggles and playing with many different types of fabric and meltable materials [always wonderful]!

Simple button making first:

 

And the results:

Then Dorset buttons:

Really enjoyed this and had fun stretching the boundaries!

Now toggles:

Really liked these against some hand dyed fabric and because all the fabrics involved in making these are from the same dye batch the colour combinations are a joy.

Toggles made from ‘meltable’ materials:

I have photographed these pre-melting to demonstrate the changes the materials undergo, the first photo in each of these 3 sets are therefore taken prior to melting. The page numbers correspond with the text on the page above:

No 1:

Combination of layered materials some meltable and some not which are then zapped with a heat gun

No. 2

Layers of meltable materials [Tyvek and metallic threads] exposed to a heat gun:

No. 3

Layers of  Tyvek and nylon or synthetic fabrics pressed with the tip of a soldering iron:

Time spent -  approx 21 hours

Expenditure - Soldering iron [£23.50] and Bondaweb 1 metre [£4.75]  both from Art Van Go