I bought these pants a while back, and I love them. Except for the fact that this button will not stay done up no matter what I do. The pants fit me fine; in fact they’re a tad loose. It’s really the button that’s the issue. I’d like to remove this button and replace it with a regular button that goes into a hole. I can sew a button by hand no problem. But I’ve got no sewing machine and no idea how to remove this button without ruining the pants.
AIMR
(Linda -2024 Choose Projects that You Want to Do :us:)
2
I wouldn’t remove it…If you have some breathing room in the waist, just sew a button right next to it and make a simple button hole on either side of the other side (can you do the buttonhole stitch? google it…it is very easy!) .
Snaps like those are pressed on so that the metal bits get smashed together. You would probably tear a hole in the pants if you tried to undo it…and it is really tough to do.
Yeah, that is a press-on snap, so there’s likely to be a small hole behind each half. You can still remove it but it would be a pliers/pry with screwdriver kind of project of the sort where there’s an 80% chance of accidentally stabbing yourself and then even if you can encorporate the hole left behind into the buttonhole, you’d probably need to patch the side you wanted the button to go onto. If you’re at the point where you hate the current hardware with the fire of a thousand suns then go ahead & see if you can pry it up (keeping in mind where your pry tools will end up if when they slip!) but it’s likely to turn into a Project.
If there’s room to sub in a button like AIMR suggests, I think that would be the easiest option, or you could sew something that actually stays fastened (heavy duty velcro maybe or a snug hook & eye) where it could do the actual fastening while the original snap is still what you see on the outside.
Oooh, I like both of these ideas (just sewing a button and/or doing hook & eye).
Thanks @AIMR for the reminder about the buttonhole stitch… I hadn’t even thought of that… my next question was going to be… how do I make a hole big enough for the button I’ll sew on… and I hadn’t even thought that I’d need to reinforce it as well.
I’ve sewn on buttons that had fallen off before, but never a new one. This will be a learning small project for me, because I don’t hate the hardware. I actually quite like it… if it would just stay closed!
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AIMR
(Linda -2024 Choose Projects that You Want to Do :us:)
5
You don’t want to do a hole…you want to make a slit a bit smaller that the diameter of the button…stitch all around with a small stabbing/running stitch and then buttonhole stitch over it to make it look nicer. Try to make the stitches close together like a true handmade buttonhole.
You know, if you really like the hardware…you can do a backward button…put the button hole on the side closest to your tummy and sew the button on the INSIDE of the front waistband…backward button it …you would then see the hardware snap but not the button or the buttonhole…I like this idea better, but you might not appreciate trying to undo such a button if you have to potty quickly!
I had a pair of pants ages ago that I did this woth. Super helpful. All my man’s pants have a button and a flat hook and he hasn’t popped a button since he switched to a brand that does this.
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AIMR
(Linda -2024 Choose Projects that You Want to Do :us:)
12
A good quality men’s regular pants have an interior button just for that reason! The interior button sits close to the body and can take the strain of most activities so it less likely to pop.
It’s great when companies think of these small details that solve such annoying and preventable clothing issues!
