Genius upcycling idea: you’re just one button away from a new blouse

The spare buttons on my blouses are waiting for their time to shine. They cling on to the label in hope that one of their colleagues’ threads will tear. But it hardly ever happens, at least not on my button panels. That’s great for me but sad for the subs. Yet this missed opportunity can encourage a new perspective. By that I don’t mean just filling in the gap somewhere, but taking centre stage. A simple upcycling trick can make that happen.

Exciting look, pretty silhouette

Recently, editorial colleague Pia sent me a super simple fashion hack on Tiktok that doesn’t require advanced sewing skills or a ton of work. All you need to do is sew one of your spare buttons on one side of the shirt. This means you can do the shirt up in two ways, at the side for a wrap-around effect or at the front as usual.

You can give old blouses that are boring or don’t fit properly a new kind of style. And if you’ve ever tried to tuck a wide-cut shirt neatly into the waistband, you’ll know it’s a mess. By fastening the shirt at the waist, you can get the textile chaos under control and simultaneously conjure up a flattering silhouette. Wearing clothes differently than intended is also a big thing in fashion at the moment. It awakens your experimentative inner child and expands your styling horizons.

How it works

All you need for this simple but effective hack is a thread, needle, pin, scissors – and a blouse with a spare button. Of course, you can use any button as long as it fits through the eyelet and matches the rest of the look.

First, put the blouse of your choice on and stand in front of a mirror. Have a look where you want to place the button. Take your time and try out various placements. As soon as you’ve decided, mark the spot with a pin. I recommend positioning the button just behind or in front of the side seam. This way it’s not as noticeable when you button the shirt as intended or if you want to leave it open.

Now you just need to sew the button on which shouldn’t take you more than 5 minutes. You’ve never done that? Don’t worry. Firstly, it’s incredibly easy and secondly, there are numerous instructions on the internet, for example this two-minute tutorial. Even as a newcomer to button sewing, I effortlessly added an extra button to two of my blouses and they probably won’t be the last.