Button Love

As a family we decided to do a mostly homemade Christmas this year.  We all had a great time coming up with and creating gifts for all the people we love.  One of my favorites though was inspired by a project I saw on Pinterest- the button art I made for each of my sisters and 2 of my nephews.

The project is fairly simple.  Take a canvas, any size, and staple fabric to it (i used a staple gun for power and speed but a heavy duty stapler would also work.  I found that a simple pattern such as a polka dot usually worked best- if the fabric is too busy it will take away from the buttons.

The fabric for this one was a little too busy and the button turtle got a little lost.

Now the fun part- the buttons!  You can get them at any craft store and they come in tons of different sizes and colors.  I like to lay out the buttons on the canvas before I start sewing them down just to get a feel for how it will look.

 Once you're happy with the layout take a photo (I did on my phone) to use as reference- it won't turn out exactly the same but it will help with positioning and spacing.  I always start at the bottom and work up sewing each button next each other so that there are no gaps but the options are endless.

laying out the buttons...

finished project

After all the buttons are sewn on I take a piece of ribbon long enough to tie a bow in and staple it to the back of the canvas- you don't have to do this step but i like how it looks hanging on the wall from the ribbon.

Voila!  This project also works well with a simple initial as well...

 I loved them so much I made one for myself :)