The best way to make use of all those extra buttons you've saved over the years is to make jewelry with buttons! Check out these 10 projects and get inspired!
How to Make Jewelry With Buttons
If you love crafting, then odds are you have stockpiles of your favorite crafting supplies. Countless spools of ribbon? Check. Piles of fabric and felt? Check. Bins of buttons? Check again.
Sometimes you may not even need it for a project you're working on. You'll see a super cute vintage button out in the wild and have to have it. What do you do when your button collection starts to take over your craft room? Make jewelry, of course!
Never thought of using a button other than on a shirt? That's okay - we've got tons of ideas for making jewelry with buttons. Get ready to take your jewelry game to the next level using adorable rhinestone, vintage, or even glass buttons.
Check out our top 10 easy projects to learn how to make jewelry with buttons.
Creating Jewelry with Buttons
Buttons may not be your go-to product when making jewelry, but they can be very unique. Button styles aren't limited to the type you find on blouses or button-up shirts. Old fashioned buttons can make a bold statement piece of jewelry.
Create one of a kind jewelry using a variety of buttons and supplies that you already have on hand. Beautiful jewelry can be made in less than an hour with these fun and easy projects. Here are some of our favorite ideas:
Vintage Necklace
For this necklace, you will need vintage buttons, pliers, satin ribbon, scissors, faux leather, a hot glue gun, and beads.
This project is very straightforward. Layout your buttons in the pattern you want, filling in empty spaces with the beads as an embellishment. If you don't have enough vintage buttons on hand, you can find some in specialty shops online.
Cut a piece of the faux leather big enough to fit your buttons, glue the strip of ribbon to the back, and then glue the buttons onto the fabric. Make sure you've trimmed the back of the buttons, so they lie flat.
After you've glued your buttons and beads on, trim the extra fabric near the edges of the buttons. Tie the ribbon around your neck, and you have a fabulous vintage necklace!
Button Bracelet
This simple project only needs a few supplies: 1/4" or 3/8" elastic, a needle and thread, and buttons.
Start by choosing the buttons you'd like for your bracelet. Choose a single color palette to go with or mix it up for a funky look! Wrap the elastic loosely around your wrist and cut to size with a little extra for overlap. Then, sew the ends together.
The next step is to start sewing your buttons onto the elastic band. Have the buttons overlap a bit, so you don't see the elastic. Continue to add the buttons until your elastic band is full. That's it! Your fantastic button bracelet can be ready to go in under 30 minutes.
Vintage Ring
Choose from one of your extra large buttons to make a beautiful statement piece to pair with any outfit. The supplies are super simple as you need a vintage button, a ring base, glue, and a pair of scissors.
First, remove the backing off of the back of the button with the scissors. Apply some glue to the back of the button and stick it to the ring base, applying pressure. Then, you're done! Use a similar button that you used in your vintage necklace to make a beautiful jewelry set.
Stud Earrings
These stud earrings can be made with fabric or adorable rhinestone buttons, and they're so easy! The supplies you need are two buttons, pliers, glue, and earring posts.
The first thing you need to do for these earrings is to use pliers to cut the backing off the back of the button. Then, glue the button onto the earring posts, and ta-da! You have an adorable pair of earrings in a few minutes.
If you don't want to buy new earring posts, then reuse an old pair of earrings. Either glue the button directly onto the old earring or pry it off. Easy peasy!
Layered Button Necklace
To make this necklace, you only need two buttons, 24 gauge or thinner wire, wire cutters, jewelry bail, jewelry glue, and a necklace chain.
Make sure you pick one small and one large button. Thread your wire through the holes of both buttons, securing the wire tightly on the back. After you trim the wire, glue the jewelry bail to the back and let it dry.
Thread your necklace chain through the jewelry bail, and your necklace is complete! Mix and match different patterns and colors to create your own collection of necklaces.
Dangly Earrings
The supplies you need for a pair of whimsical dangly earrings are fabric buttons, ear wires, paper clips, wire cutters, and hot glue.
Use the wire cutters to remove the backing from your buttons. Then, clip off the top part of the paperclip. It should look like a long and skinny U shape. Glue the paper clip to the back of the button. Don't burn yourself!
After that, open the end of the ear wire, slip it around the paperclip, and then twist it back shut. Hang your button dangly earrings with pride in your collection of jewelry.
Button Bobby Pins
Who says you can't have jewelry for your hair? For this project, you will need bobby pins, buttons, and a strong adhesive.
In this craft, you won't be cutting the loop off the back of the button. Slide that up through the top bar of the bobby pin. If the hole on the back of the button is too big, try sliding the entire bobby pin through the loop.
Put a bit of glue to the button and bobby pin and apply some pressure while the glue sets, but not so much that the button slides out of place. Make sure the glue has dried fully before putting it in your hair. You might not want to have this button bobby pin as a permanent piece on your head!
Vintage Bracelet
Grab some more of the leftover vintage buttons from your necklace and scissors, a hot glue gun, and a plain metal bracelet or bangle.
Cut the backing off all the buttons. Feel free to mix and match different sizes of buttons. Glue the buttons onto the bracelet, but be careful. The metal can get hot using a hot glue gun.
And just like that, your bracelet is complete! Make several in coordinating styles so you can stack them for a funky look.
Brooch
You can never go wrong with a brooch, and you can easily make one at home with a button, scissors, pen, felt, a hot glue gun, and a brooch pin.
A brooch can be made with any type of button, even a bunch of small ones. If you're looking to make a statement piece, check out an extra-large Czech glass button. Trace a circle on the felt to fit the size you need, gluing the button onto the felt.
Cut out around the border of the button, then hot glue the brooch pin to the back. Pin it to an elegant black dress the next time you go out for a timeless look.
Button Cuff Bracelet
This easy craft is made from a chunky piece of elastic and whatever type of buttons you'd like, along with a thread and needle and a pair of scissors.
Measure your wrist to make sure you cut a long enough piece of elastic. Add a bit extra to the end for overlapping. Sew the ends together either by hand or with a sewing machine. Then, start adding in your buttons!
You can use all the same style of button or mix and match for a fun and funky look. All you have to do is sew them on with whatever color of thread you want to use. The more colorful, the better! Make as many bracelets as you'd like - the possibilities are endless.
Time to Get Crafting
Making jewelry with buttons is quick and easy. You can create a whole collection of pieces in the time of a single afternoon. Go with vintage buttons and make classy statement pieces or grab a handful of candy-colored buttons to create some whimsical earrings with a matching bracelet.
If you're looking for vintage, rhinestone, or even Czech glass buttons, visit the Zaza of Canada shop to explore all the buttons we have in stock. Sign up for our mailing list and newsletter to stay up to date with what's going on in our shop.
We can't wait to see the wonderful pieces you create!
