How to Sew Bound Buttonholes: A Step-by-Step Tutorial

A bound buttonhole is a small fabric-bound opening that replaces a machine-stitched buttonhole. Instead of zigzag stitching defining the buttonhole edges, two narrow strips of fabric (the binding) edge the slit, and a small piece of fabric on the back finishes the inside. The result is a buttonhole that looks like a tiny welt pocket — clean, fabric-defined, and unmistakably hand-tailored.

Bound buttonholes are the luxury detail of tailored coats, blazers, and couture garments. They take 30–45 minutes each compared to 1–2 minutes for a machine buttonhole — but the visual difference is dramatic. A coat with bound buttonholes reads as bespoke; the same coat with machine buttonholes reads as nice but unremarkable.

This guide covers how to make bound buttonholes step by step. The technique is closely related to welt pocket construction (covered in our welt pockets guide), and the precision skills transfer.

What a bound buttonhole looks like

From the outside: a narrow horizontal opening (the buttonhole), bordered on top and bottom by two narrow strips of fabric (the welts/binding). The opening is the same size as a machine buttonhole, but the edges are fabric rather than thread.

From the inside (the wrong side of the garment): a small rectangular piece of fabric (the facing) covers the back of the buttonhole, with the two binding strips emerging through to the back to be sewn into place.

When to use bound buttonholes

Always when:

The buttonhole is on a garment where the front is folded back (a coat, blazer, jacket front).
You’re making a high-end garment where the detail matters.
The fabric is heavy (machine buttonholes on heavy wool or coating fabric can look messy).

Skip bound buttonholes for:

Casual or sports garments where the time investment isn’t justified.
Garments where the buttonhole is on a placket where machine buttonholes are standard (shirt fronts, dress backs).
Lightweight fabrics where bound buttonholes can look bulky compared to delicate machine buttonholes.

Time investment

Per buttonhole:

First time: 60+ minutes per buttonhole.
After practice: 30–45 minutes.
For an experienced tailor: 20–30 minutes.

For a coat with 6 buttons, that’s 3–6 hours of buttonhole work for an experienced sewer. For a first attempt, allow a full afternoon for a single buttonhole.

What you need

The garment piece where the buttonhole will be installed.
Binding fabric: same fabric as the garment, in small strips (about 4 cm × 12 cm each — you need 2 strips per buttonhole).
Facing fabric: same fabric as the garment, in small rectangles (about 6 cm × 6 cm each — one per buttonhole).
Fusible interfacing: a small piece for stiffening the binding.
Sharp scissors or seam ripper.
Sewing machine.
Hand-sewing supplies: needle, thread, thimble.
Iron, fabric marker, ruler.

Step 1: Determine buttonhole size

The standard rule: a buttonhole’s length equals the diameter of the button + the height of the button + 2 mm.

For a 1.5 cm button that’s 4 mm thick, the buttonhole is about 1.9 cm long.

Mark all your buttonhole positions on the garment, with horizontal marks indicating the centre of each buttonhole and the start/end of the slit.

Step 2: Prepare the binding strips

Cut two strips of binding fabric for each buttonhole. Each strip is about 4 cm × 12 cm — longer than the buttonhole length, with extra at each end for tucking under.

For each strip:

Apply fusible interfacing to half the strip (lengthwise). The interfaced half becomes the visible binding; the un-interfaced half becomes the seam allowance hidden inside.
Fold the strip in half lengthwise (right side out), with the interfaced half on top.
Press flat.

You now have a strip about 2 cm × 12 cm, with the interfaced layer on top.

Step 3: Pin the binding strips to the garment

This is the precision step.

On the right side of the garment, locate the marked buttonhole position.
Place the first binding strip with its folded edge along the top horizontal mark of the buttonhole. The folded edge points toward the buttonhole; the raw edges point upward and away.
Place the second binding strip with its folded edge along the bottom horizontal mark of the buttonhole. The folded edge points toward the buttonhole; the raw edges point downward and away.

The two strips’ folded edges should be parallel, with the buttonhole gap between them.

Pin both strips in place.

Step 4: Sew the binding strips down

Sew along the folded edge of each binding strip — exactly along the marked horizontal lines.

Stitch length about 1.5–2.0 mm.
Sew exactly between the marked endpoints (the buttonhole’s start and end). Backstitch carefully at both ends, but don’t extend stitching beyond the marks.
Each binding strip has one row of stitching.

You now have two rows of parallel stitching, each precisely the length of the buttonhole, with the binding strips’ folded edges along these rows.

Step 5: Cut the buttonhole slit

This is the moment of commitment.

The Y-cut: a central slit with two diagonal cuts at each end, reaching exactly to the corners of the stitched binding rows.

From the right side:

Use a sharp seam ripper to cut between the two rows of stitching, down the centre of the buttonhole gap.
Stop about 5 mm short of each end.
At each end, cut diagonally toward the corners — toward the very ends of your stitched lines, but not through them. The diagonal cuts let the buttonhole opening open up cleanly without the corners pulling.

The cuts form a long horizontal slit with small triangular flaps at each end.

Step 6: Push the binding strips through

Push each binding strip down through the slit to the wrong side of the garment.
The strips’ folded edges should now meet at the buttonhole opening, with the raw edges hidden behind on the wrong side.

When done, the buttonhole has two narrow strips of fabric edging it — the binding.

Step 7: Press

From the right side:

Press the buttonhole flat, with the binding strips’ folded edges meeting in the middle.
The slit should now look like a fabric-bound opening rather than a raw cut.

Step 8: Sew the small triangles at each end

The diagonal cuts at the slit ends produced small triangular flaps. From the wrong side:

Push the triangles to the wrong side, behind the binding.
Sew a small reinforcement stitch at each end of the slit, securing the triangle to the binding strips. Stitch back and forth a few times.

This holds the buttonhole opening from coming apart with use.

Step 9: Apply the facing piece

The facing covers the wrong side of the buttonhole, hiding the binding ends and creating a clean inside finish.

Cut a piece of facing fabric about 6 × 6 cm.
With the wrong side of the garment up, position the facing piece over the entire back of the buttonhole.
Pin in place.
Sew the facing to the back of the binding strips along all four sides of the buttonhole opening, using small machine stitches or hand stitches.
Trim excess facing fabric.

The wrong side now has a small rectangular facing covering everything.

Step 10: Cut the facing slit

The facing has covered the buttonhole opening — but the buttonhole itself needs to be open again. Cut a slit in the facing, mirroring the slit on the front:

Use scissors to cut the same horizontal slit in the facing.
At each end, cut diagonally to the corners.
Tuck the small flaps under and tack them to the back of the buttonhole, hiding them.

The buttonhole is now open from both sides, with clean edges visible from the outside (the binding) and a neat finished inside (the facing).

Step 11: Final pressing and check

Press the buttonhole flat from the right side. The binding should sit clean on either side of the opening, with no bulk and no peeking through.

Test by pushing a button through. The opening should close tightly around the button, with the binding strips holding the shape.

Common bound buttonhole problems

The buttonhole is uneven

The two binding strips weren’t sewn at the same length, or one strip was placed slightly off the marked horizontal line. Re-do, paying special attention to start and end points of each row of stitching.

The corners look messy

The diagonal cuts went through the stitching, or the small triangles weren’t sewn to the binding cleanly. Re-do or hand-stitch the corners more carefully.

The buttonhole is too small

Wrong calculation, or the binding strips were too far apart. Re-cut with the binding strips closer together.

The facing shows from the front

The facing wasn’t applied with the slit cut in the right place. Re-do the facing alignment.

The fabric pulls at the corners

Insufficient interfacing in the binding, or the corners weren’t sewn to the binding strongly. Reinforce hand stitches at corners.

The binding strips peek out of place

The strips weren’t pressed flat, or the strips were positioned too close to the edges. Press carefully and re-sew if needed.

Practising

Critical: practice bound buttonholes on scrap before attempting on a garment.

Cut a 25 × 25 cm piece of fabric (the same fabric as your garment).
Mark a buttonhole position.
Walk through the steps above.

The first practice buttonhole is rough. The second is much better. By the third practice piece, you’re ready for the real garment.

Bound buttonholes on lined garments

If the garment has a lining (which most coats do):

Make the bound buttonhole through the outer fabric AND any underlining or interfacing.
After the lining is applied, cut a slit in the lining at each buttonhole position, fold the cut edges under, and hand-stitch them around the buttonhole opening.

The result is a buttonhole that’s bound on the outside and clean on the lining side.

Tools that help

Buttonhole gauge or template: a small ruler or cardboard cutout sized to your buttonhole length, used to position binding strips precisely.
Long fine pins: to hold binding strips while sewing.
Fine seam ripper: for cutting slits cleanly without tearing.
Pressing cloth: to protect fabric during pressing.

When you’ve mastered bound buttonholes

You’re ready to incorporate them across your tailoring:

Tailored coats: the classic application.
Tailored blazers: see our blazer construction guide.
Couture garments: where they’re standard.
Vintage pattern recreation: many tailored vintage patterns specify bound buttonholes.

Closing thought

Bound buttonholes are the small detail that elevates a garment from “well-made” to “obviously hand-tailored.” The 30–45 minutes per buttonhole feels long the first time, but the cumulative effect on the garment’s appearance is significant. A coat with six bound buttonholes reads as a bespoke piece in a way that the same coat with machine buttonholes never quite does.

For where bound buttonholes fit in the broader advanced tailoring skillset, see our complete advanced tailoring roadmap. The technique pairs especially well with our tailored blazer guide and coat construction guide.