When we inspect designer shirts and cardigans, we most likely see vertical buttonholes along the button bands, not horizontal buttonholes. It is not a coincidence.
Because buttons can slide from side to side in horizontal buttonholes, the overlapping button bands shift. Even with minimal tension this shift leads to gaps in the sections between the buttons.
Vertical buttonholes, on the other hand, keep the buttons firmly in place making sure that the button bands are nicely overlapped, and the cardigan closure does not look like digits eight stacked on top of each other.
The biggest issue with adding vertical buttonholes to our hand knits is that to make a vertical slit in a knitted fabric we should work two sides of the buttonhole separately.
The common approach is to make one side of a buttonhole, break the yarn, re-attach it to the other side, and make the second half of the buttonhole. This solution works, but if we want to make six, eight, ten or more buttonholes, we’ll end up with quite a few extra yarn tails.
Thankfully, we can trick the knitted fabric and make beautiful sleek vertical buttonholes without breaking the working yarn.
Here’s how we can do it step by step.
This type of buttonholes looks neat and tidy on any stitch pattern, and it blends in perfectly with the texture of ribbing, looking exactly the same on both sides of the fabric.
To download an 11-page PDF with the step-by-step photo tutorial about this method, click here to join the All Tutorials Club 2022.
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click here to download this PDF from the Club dashboard.
If you enjoyed this tutorial,
here’s something else you might find helpful:
“Neat Side Edges” Book
Learn twelve ways to make side edges of a knitted project nice and tidy. Plus, ways to fix side edges, and a way to improve edges of finished projects.
Happy knitting!
