More About Buttonholes

One hundred sewing and embroidery tips and tricks - #11

Have you ever wanted to change button sizes on a pattern but you were unsure about repositioning your coordinating button holes? Changing a button size means changing spacing. Spacing from the edge is called the "stay." Take a look at the guide below and you"ll get details for how to measure and mark according to button size.

​Stay is the amount of space between the edge of the garment and where the buttonhole is placed. The stay usually equals the size of the button. However, you never go under ½- inch or over 1-inch.
 
Example:
½-inch button equals ½-inch stay
¾-inch button equals ¾-inch stay
1 ¼-inch button equals a ONE inch stay
¼-inch button equals a ONE HALF inch stay

Feel free to change button sizes and alter your button hole spacing to make both buttons and buttonholes coordinate beautifully.