14th Century Cloth and Thread Button Class Handout

Download a copy of the handout by clicking on this sentence.

 

14th Century Cloth and Thread Buttons

Taught by Temair ingen Muiredaich at Pennsic 47 on 1 AUG 2018

Button-like objects of bone and metal have been found in archaeological deposits of the Late Bronze Age (1250BC - 1000BC; sometimes referred to as the Mycenaean Palatial Civilization Collapse) and onwards.  There is no conclusive evidence of Iron Age use of metal buttons in Britain, and scholars appear unsure if they were used by the Romans.  However, metal buttons became common in medieval times, where they could be plain or patterned, or with expensive gemstone decoration for the upper classes.  Other common buttons were created with knobs of cloth or when threads were wrapped around a wooden core.  By the 14th Century, buttons were worn as ornaments and fastenings from the elbow to the wrist and from the neckline to the waist.  The wearing of gold, silver and ivory buttons was an indication of wealth and rank.  If your persona cannot afford luxurious buttons, your persona is “forbidden by law”, or your mundane pocket book can’t handle the cost right now, we will learn to perfectly acceptable buttons to decorate your garb with.  These work for time periods other than just the 14th century too!

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Cloth Buttons (Self Stuffing Buttons):

 

à        Materials:

o   Thread.  It can be cotton, wool, silk, whatever you desire.  It should match your fabric type and color, but you can choose a contrasting color to make it “pop”.  Nothing says you can’t use silk on wool, etc.  Just think of ease of care for the garment and know if the thread or the fabric will shrink at a different rate.

o   Cloth. Whatever you made your garb from is fine.  Linen, wool, cotton and most blends all work well.  Silk can get iffy because of the number of stabs, but you can make it work.  Thinner fabric will make a smaller button, thicker fabric will make a larger button.  Though we are making self-stuffing buttons, nothing says you can’t add a little extras stuffing to make the buttons bigger.

o   A needle large with an eye large enough to thread and long/strong enough to go through a few layers.  Sharper tips are better depending on the fabric, just be careful not to cut the thread as you sew through the layers.

o   Scissors.

 

à        Steps:



Start with a 3” circle of cloth and baste just inside the circle.




 Next we’ll pull the treads up to form a ball, and then flatten it out so the “edges” that we basted before are now in the center.



 From here we’ll baste along the outside edge again and then pull the basting stitches up to form a ball.




 Then just sew all those edges closed forming the shank of the button.  This can be as exaggerated as you want it to be.

 

   

 The elbow hinge of Charles du Blois doublet                                     Close up of a reconstruction  
from Les Arts Decoratifs                                                                     of the the doublet by Stitch-n-Time


Photo from Atelier de Restauration et de Conservation, Musee Historique des Tissus de Lyone.  
Taken May 1981 by Marie Schoefer.

Doublet discovered in Pandolfo III Malatesta’s (1370-1427) sarcophagus situated in St. Francis Church in Fano (PU).

à        Other:

If you search on 14th century cloth buttons, you will see a variety of ways to make these buttons.  You can start with a coin in the center to get a more rounded shape.  You can use a square of cloth to get smoother top.  Feel free to search and experiment for other versions to match your taste!

 

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Thread Buttons:

à        Materials:

o   Thread.  It can be cotton, wool, silk, whatever you desire.  The metallic threads are nice, but are not easy to work with at first.  Also be careful how “hairy” your wool thread is as it needs to be able to drawn past itself a number of times.  Different thicknesses will result in a different look.  The thread type, how many strands you use (for stranded threads) and the size of the bead determine how your final product will look.

o   Round wooden bead with a “large” hole.  I bought mine at AC Moore, I’ve seen them at JoAnns also.  The larger the bead, the larger the button.  Also realize as you get smaller, so does the hole in the center and you may need to adjust the number of warp or framework passes you do.  We are using 12mm wooden buttons, but I’ve given you some others to experiment with.  Feel free to try different sizes with different types of thread to get the look you desire.

o   A needle large with an eye large enough to thread, but small enough to do the weft stitches.  Blunt tips are better so you are not cutting the thread as you wind around the weft threads.

o   Scissors.

 

à        Instructions:

o   Secure and loop the thread through and around the bead 8 times, to make a framework. You can either leave the thread end trailing to use to make the shank or not, I do not.  I tie it off and hide the knot inside and make a shank with the running end of the thread.

o   Loop the thread back and under your first structural thread, and then bring it forward to the next one to repeat until the bead is covered.

o   Finish the thread off with a French knot, by wrapping the thread around the needle twice and then pulling it through to the other side (I have then pulled both trailing threads back through again as the threads are more tightly packed on the first side of the button that got covered, therefore I wanted this to be the front).

o   Loop and secure the trailing threads to create a shank.

o   Buttonhole stitch around the looped shank and secure.

Doublet in a museum in London.  “Satin wrapped threads around the bead and embroidered over the top.”

Example from the Museum of London, a doublet from the Isham Collection. This is silk and metallic thread wrapped buttons.

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Notes:

All pictures found on utilizing a search engine.  The pictures above with the exception of the 6 thread wrapped buttons are not my pictures and I make no claim to them.  If the original owner is known and wants them removed from the handout, please contact me and it will be done immediately.

 

Contact Info:

Temair ingen Muiredaich can be contacted on Facebook via the name to the left or via e-mail at temairmuiredaich@gmail.com


 

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