Tutorial: Button Clasp (two hole button with holes smaller than 1.5mm)

 

Complete the bracelet so that it is the required length of the completed bracelet, minus about 5mm.  Weave any loose ends into the beadwork and finish as you normally would for your choice of thread.  Remove all loose threads.

I like to place a bead between each button hole and the beadwork.  These stalks mean that the button sits flatter when the loop is round it and the loop is in contact with the beads, not rubbing against the bare thread that secures the button to the beadwork.  

The beads have to be larger than the holes in the button.  In this case, the holes are too small for size 15s to fit through and either size 11's or 8's would be perfect.  Size 15's would not allow sufficient gap between the beadwork and the button.  I will refer to this bead as the between bead.

Take the button and place it over the beadwork and decide on a suitable placement.  It should not be right at the edge of the beadwork.  I like to position it so that some rows of beads are visible between the end of the button and the end of the beadwork.

Rotate the button a little.  While it is good to have the holes situated parallel to the end of the beadwork so the loop rests on them equally, this would mean that the button is attached to one row of the bracelet. I prefer to rotate the button so the holes are off vertical as shown in the diagram below. 

Refine the position of the button so that the holes are better situated over individual beads within the beadwork.  In this instance, I moved the button up slightly.

The holes are now situated over the peyote beads marked red and blue.  

Add in a new thread in your usual way and stitch to and then through the red bead.

Stitch up through the between bead and the hole of the button.

Then stitch through the other button hole, down through the second between bead, then through the blue bead.

Stitch away from the blue bead then back round to the other side of the blue bead and then through.  This anchors the button to the beadwork as a whole, rather than to just one bead.

Stitch up through the between bead and the button hole.

Stitch back down through the other button hole, then through the other between bead then through the red bead.

Stitch away from the red bead, then back towards the red bead.  This time though, you want to pass through the red bead from the other direction.

Take the thread back up through the between bead and the button hole.

You can take the thread through the button as many times as you want.  The beadwork can get quite tight so there is a limit to how many times you can take the thread through the red and blue beads.  I use 6lb fireline which is pretty tough so the button will be strongly attached with very few passes of the thread.

Bear in mind that in order to pull evenly on the red and blue beads, you want the thread to exit the bead and go through the between bead from both sides.  This will help the between bead sit over either the red or blue bead.

Also there are four beads adjacent to both the red and the blue bead that the thread passes from, vary the thread path so the button is anchored via each of theses beads.

On the last pass of the thread through the button, use some size 15 seed beads to cover the visible thread.  Bring the thread up through the between bead and then the button hole and then pick up the size 15 beads before bringing the thread through the other button hole and the other between bead.

Size 15 crystal beads work well for covering the button thread.  Matching the peyote beadwork is another option or you can match the button to make the 15s less visible.

The number of 15s to use depends on the gap between the two button holes.  You do not want to use too many as this will make the thread loose over the top. It's better to use one less than have the thread loose.

Once finished, thread through the beadwork and finish the thread in your normal way.

The clasp requires a loop to be complete and as there are different styles of loop and these can be used for a number of different clasps, they are covered in separate tutorials.  

These currently include:

Wide Simple Loop