Buttonhole

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For another meaning, see boutonniere
Machine-stitched keyhole buttonhole with bar
Machine-stitched keyhole buttonhole with bar

Origin: Buttonhole came from buttonhold (originally a loop of string that held a button down); see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folk_etymology

Buttonholes are paired with functional buttons (as opposed to decorative buttons) in their function of fasteners. Alternately, a decorative loop of cloth or rope may replace the buttonhole. Buttonholes may be either made by hand sewing or automated by a sewing machine.

Buttonholes often have a bar at either end. This is a row of perpendicular hand or machine stitching to reinforce the ends of a buttonhole.

Mens shirt buttonholes are on the left side, and womens shirt buttonholes are on the right. The reason mens buttonholes are on the left is so men could draw their sword with their right hand. Womens buttonholes on the left side of the shirt is because it was easier for a right handed worker to put on the shirt for the woman.

Types of buttonholes are:

  • A plain buttonhole, by far the most common type. In plain buttonholes, the raw (cut) edges of the textile are finished with thread in very closely spaced stitches (if made by hand, often the buttonhole stitch). When stitched by hand, a slit is made in the fabric first and the result is called a worked buttonhole.
Sewing machines offer various levels of automation to creating plain buttonholes.
  • A machine-made buttonhole is usually sewn with two parallel rows of machine sewing in a narrow zig-zag stitch, with the ends finished in a broader zig-zag stitch. (One of the first automatic buttonhole machines was invented by Henry Alonzo House in 1862.)
When made by machine, the slit between the sides of the buttonhole is opened after the stiching is completed.
  • A bound buttonhole, which has its raw edges encased by pieces of fabric or trim instead of stitches.
  • A keyhole buttonhole is a special case of a thread-finished buttonhole that is normally machine-made due to the difficulty of achieving it by hand working. It is characterized by a round hole at the end of the slit to accommodate the button's shank without distorting the fabric.
Keyhole buttonholes are most often found on tailored coats and jackets.
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