Buttonholes

Buttonholes are sewn to the front of the jacket before the lining is sewn closed.  There will be a finished button on the outside of the jacket, and then a faux bound buttonhole on the lining side so both sides look nice.

I started with hand sewn buttonholes in black silk twist thread, but the fabric is bumpy and ravelly and the buttonholes aren't as pretty as I'd like.  After trying a great number of buttonholes with different threads, bound buttonholes using different contrast fabrics, and "Spanish snap" buttonholes, I've finally selected a machine buttonhole using the "Heirloom" setting on my Viking machine.  The thread is a gold embroider thread that picks up the gold flecks in the tweed.

I've hand basted a small silk organza square on the inside of each buttonhole, for added stability and to help the stitches to run smoothly through the machine.

Here's one of the finished buttonholes

The lining side is finished with a "faux bound" buttonhole.  You baste two strips of fabric for the bound edges, then cut into the lining and tuck it under a tiny bit and hand stitch it closed.  The silk lining is thin and slippery, so it's tricky getting the edges turned under.