Today is the last day of the Brynn sewalong and all we are doing is sewing buttonholes and buttons. Since I know this is usually the scariest part of the pattern for most people, we are dedicating an entire day for it so we can offer lots of support and tips.
First grab your Button/Buttonhole Guide and your buttons. The pattern calls for 18L (11/16" or 11.5mm) buttons which is what I am using, but anything between 3/8" and 1/2" will work great.
Step 19 - Use the Buttonhole Guide pattern piece to mark buttonholes on the right side (when wearing) of the garment Neckband, aligning the lower end of the guide with the bottom edge of the Neckband. (You can also do buttonholes on the left instead if you prefer.)
I use a crayola marker generally when marking because it's very easy to wash out and comes in lots of colors, but any marking tool you prefer is fine.
Now sew your buttonholes according to the markings you just made. I sewed them on all three of the Brynns that I made during the sewalong so here they are.
Tip: Buttonholes on knit fabrics can be tricky. The interfacing on the Neckband should help a lot, but if you need more stability, just take a piece of tissue paper and place it under the neckband when sewing. It will give the machine something to grab onto and is easy to peel off afterwards.
I am going to share three ways to finish the buttons and buttonholes.
METHOD 1
The first way, which I will be sewing on the burgundy Brynn, is the same way as the instructions.
Carefully open your buttonholes.
On the left Neckband mark the button placement. Note that the top and bottom buttons are not centered in the buttonhole. This is intentional as it locks the Neckband in place and keeps it from shifting when wearing.
Sew on your buttons accordingly. I sew mine on my machine so I first secure them with a glue stick and then sew them on once dry. You can also just hand sew them on.
Then that is it. You can wear the Brynn buttoned or unbutttoned.
METHOD 2
If you always plan on wearing your top or dress buttoned up and not unbuttoned as a cardigan, you may choose to sew the buttons on through all layers to help secure the center front opening. To do this, skip opening your buttonholes, align the right Neckband over the left, and sew buttons on through all Neckband layers.
You can also do a combination of both like I will show you. I like to leave the bottom two buttons open on my cardigans so I will sew through all layers on the top four buttons and do the bottom two buttons the traditional way.
Line the right neckband over the left and pin or glue them on top of one another. Mark button placement on the right neckband if sewing through all layers and on the left neckband for the ones you are not.
On your sewing machine or by hand, sew buttons through both neckbands if you are OK with them not opening and on the left neckband for the ones you want to open.
METHOD 3
This last method if for if you always want to leave your cardigan closed and if you are worried about it gaping open between buttons. I usually do this on my dress length Brynns.
To start, line the right neckband over the left and pin or glue them on top of one another. Slightly cheat the left neckband over the right by an extra 1/16". Mark button placement on the right neckband if sewing through all layers and on the left neckband for the ones you are not. (I personally like to leave the bottom two or three buttons open for the hip or dress lengths but for this on I am closing them all up.)
On your sewing machine or by hand, sew buttons through both neckbands.
Turn the Brynn inside out.
Make a line of sewing on top of the seam line (where the neckband meets the garment) of the right neckband, catching the edge of the fold of the left neckband in the line of stitching. Only do the stitching between the top and bottom buttons.
Once turned right side out, it should have the appearance of being a normal button up, while being attached on the inside.
And that is it! Your Brynn is finished.