How can I re-attach the jeans button?

March 30, 2006 11:19 AM

Any seamstresses? How can I re-attach the button to my jeans?

My girlfriend has a pair of jeans where the front button (the one above the zipper) has come un-attached. Since it's not really sew-able, what can we do to reattach it? It's a stud-type button, made of metal, without holes or anything (the standard kind of jeans button; like this one). They're Gap jeans, fif that makes a difference.

posted by maxreax to clothing, beauty, & fashion (16 answers total)

Why not replace it with a regular sew-on button?
posted by Kirth Gerson at 11:27 AM on March 30, 2006

Seems like the sort of thing a professional could do for less than 10 bucks. Check with your local dry cleaner or shoe repair shop; they often repair bags and totes as well, and can probably reattach a weird button like that.
posted by junkbox at 11:41 AM on March 30, 2006

Kirth: Denim is very hard to hand-sew through, especially through areas of reinforcement or seams, like the waistband of jeans (although, hmm, my jeans are kinda thin).

The area where it fell out probably has a hole in it too now which you'd have to fix before sewing something through it. If the denim was thin, you could get a sturdy needle, reinforced thread, and a new button (one w/ a shank instead of holes). Patch the hole where it ripped out if necessary with self-adhesive patches (probably the new button will cover it up anyway and hold it in). Then stitch your new button in.

Alternatively, you could buy a new jean button like you have, punch a new hole in your patch, then attach the button (it'll have 2 parts and require clamping together).

Hmm, I like junkbox's idea. :)
posted by artifarce at 11:57 AM on March 30, 2006

I had the exact thing happen to my Gap jeans and had an alteration shop fix it for $7 (but the button itself didn't need to be replaced.) It took 5 minutes.
posted by meerkatty at 11:58 AM on March 30, 2006

artifarce, I've done it several times. Not a big deal.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 12:01 PM on March 30, 2006

Have you checked out the sewers in your neighborhood?
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 12:01 PM on March 30, 2006

If you have an old pair of jeans, you could get the whole button area and sew it on top (or behind, if the hole is big enough to get the button through) of the area that is missing the button.
posted by 445supermag at 12:25 PM on March 30, 2006

Take it to the local dry cleaner/alternations. They'll fix it.
posted by desuetude at 12:32 PM on March 30, 2006

You could replace the button with a new, non-rivet button. But that would likely involve going to a sewing shop where you could likely find an easy-to-use replacement button, thus making needle and thread unneeded.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 12:46 PM on March 30, 2006

(Or, inspired by 445supermag, you could liberate a normal button from another pair of pants. Then you only need a needle, thread, and toothpick to sew the button back on. Sandwich the toothpick between the button and where you want to reattach the button on the pants. Insert the needle through the side of the fabric not touching the button and bring it past the toothpick and up through an eyelet. Sew through the eyelets a whole bunch, past around the toothpick and through the fabric each time. Go up and through new eyelets each time. Once you get enough thread to keep the button in place, centered, and sturdy, slide the toothpick out. Again, bring the needle up through the pant, but this time don't bring it through an eyelet. Wind the thread around that ectral cluster of thread a bunch of times, then bring it back through the pants and tie it off with the end left there from your initial stitch.)
posted by robocop is bleeding at 12:52 PM on March 30, 2006

Have you checked out the sewers in your neighborhood?

They're dark and smelly, but that's not important right now.
posted by mendel at 1:04 PM on March 30, 2006

Here's a sub-question: if a female sewer (pronounced soh-wer) is a seamstress, what's a male sewer called? A seamster? Just asking.
posted by Faze at 1:14 PM on March 30, 2006

A tailor.
posted by Kirth Gerson at 1:21 PM on March 30, 2006

On Divine Design Candace Olson calls Edmund "the sew-er" (my hyphen).
posted by orangemiles at 2:05 PM on March 30, 2006

Some cleaners may fix it, but if you have a sewing or craft store nearby, you can buy replacement buttons just like the one that came off and put it on yourself. Be a bit cheaper, and it's super easy provided the fabric in that area is still all in one piece (the button didn't rip out, in other words). All it takes is getting the right size replacement at the sewing goods store and a hammer.
posted by Orb at 4:30 PM on March 30, 2006

oh, god mendel, that cracked me up.
posted by Space Kitty at 10:59 PM on March 30, 2006