Jul. 14, 2025
When deciding which form of sewing fasteners to use for your project, you’ll need to consider both the type of garment you’re making and the fabric you will be using. For example, do you want the clothing fasteners to be visible or not? Will they form part of the design of the outfit? Do you need fabric fasteners that are super quick to open and close to allow for quick costume changes? All of these factors will play a part in choosing the best clothes fasteners for your garment.
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To help you out, here’s an overview of some of the most popular types of clothing fasteners we sell here at MWS to add to your sewing kit.
Zippers are one of the most common and easy-to-use clothes fasteners. They consist of a series of interlocking ‘teeth,’ which are joined together and eased apart by a slider. Zippers can be adjusted to fit almost any length, and you can also choose between different teeth sizes that offer various levels of strength and flexibility. This allows you to use zippers with heavy duty material such as denim as well as delicate items such as dresses. They’re also easy to sew onto garments, either with sewing machines or by hand.
Do you want to use a zipper but don’t want it to show on a formal outfit or stage costume? Choose one of our invisible zippers, and the audience will be none the wiser! We also have zipper repair kits if you just need to replace a broken or damaged slider.
Buttons are a cheap and cheerful form of fabric fasteners used on everything from coats and shirts to pants. There are actually several different types of buttons out there, varying in size, color, shape, and what they’re made from. Whether you’re better off using plastic or metal or some other material like shell or glass will depend on the style of garment you’re attaching them to and how sturdy you need the buttons to be. Don’t forget to make a corresponding button hole on the other part of the fabric!
Some of the most common styles of button include:
Snaps – also known as snap buttons, poppers, and press studs – are very easy types of clothes fasteners to use. They come in pairs, and when the ball half is pressed into the socket half, they join together with a satisfying snap sound – hence the name! To undo them, you simply pull them apart.
Snaps can either be sewn onto fabric or fixed in place with a special setting tool, depending on which type you choose. Likewise, you can use either plastic or metal styles. For press studs which are easier to attach and less noticeable, you can use snap tape that’s sewn onto the garment as a strip with the snaps already in place. You can do this either by hand or with sewing machines. Snaps are often used on personal care garments such as baby-grows because they’re so quick and simple to open and close, yet very secure.
These styles of fabric fasteners consist of two parts: a metal hook and a corresponding metal eye. To fasten them, you simply feed the hook through the eye. They’re most commonly seen in bra fastenings and also on skirts and dresses above the zipper as an extra layer of security. You can find hook and eye fastenings in various colors and sizes to suit a range of different garments.
When using these clothes fasteners, one factor to bear in mind is that there normally needs to be some tension in the fabric to prevent the hook from slipping out of the eye again. They can also be a little fiddly and delicate, meaning they are great for formal outfits but might not be ideal for quick costume changes.
Velcro is the brand name for hook and loop tape, which consists of two strips of slightly different materials. One is a bit harder and made with hooks, while the other is softer and made with loops. When pressed together, the two sides stick securely to one another but can be easily pulled apart when needed. Velcro is commonly used as children’s shoes and clothes fasteners because it’s so simple to use but is also useful on theater costumes for quick changes. Thanks to its heavy duty nature, Velcro is also useful for bags and other types of outdoor gear. Hook and loop tape comes in a range of different sizes and colors, with some forms that need to be sewn on and others that stick on with adhesive.
Hook and Eye Closures are commonly used in clothing and accessories to fasten two edges together. They can withstand a good amount of stress and are best known as the closures for bras but they are also used for tops, dresses, children’s clothes and even above zippers in skirts. You can use them on waistlines, neck openings and cuffs.
If you are new to sewing on hook & eye fasteners or have done it before and need a refresher, read on. We’ll explain how to place hook-and-eye fasteners correctly. You attach them with hand sewing. There are different ways to attach hook and eye closures. The following method is our preferred method. It is a sturdy way and has a very clean finish. It works the same for different sizes and models of hook & eye closures.
Most hook and eye closures look like the ones in the images below. These are from the Madam Sew Hook & Eye Closures set. A hook and eye closure always consists of two parts. One part has a small metal hook. The other part has a corresponding loop, also called the eye. The little hook fits in the eye.
If you are new to sewing on hook & eye fasteners or have done it before and need a refresher, read on. We’ll explain how to place hook-and-eye fasteners correctly. You attach them with hand sewing. There are different ways to attach hook and eye closures. The following method is our preferred method. It is a sturdy way and has a very clean finish. It works the same for different sizes and models of hook & eye closures.
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When the hook is inserted into the eye, it creates a secure closure that doesn’t pop open under pressure like a snap would. The two circular holes one each part are used to sew the closures to the garment or accessory. The great thing about hook & eye fasteners is that they can be used for either overlapping or adjacent edges. On most projects hook and eye closures are completely hidden, sewn on the inside of a fabric edge or hem.
You’ll start with the hook part. With the wrong side of your fabric facing up (i.e. the inside of your garment) put the hook on the left side of your garment. It should be positioned a little way from the edge, about ⅛” is good, so that once the garment is closed and there is natural pull on the hook & eye fasteners, they won’t be visible. To find the best position for the eye, you need to attach the hook first.
1. Once you know where the hook will be placed, you can start to sew. Start through the back side of the garment (but not through the garment), right where the edge of the hook will go. Stitch two to three times in that spot to secure your thread with stitches that are only about as wide as that part of the hook so they can be hidden.
2. Position the edge of your hook on top of the stitches you just made. It is hard to keep it in place without moving so use a tiny piece of masking tape or even washi tape to secure it in place while you start to sew. Test the tape you are using to make sure it doesn’t damage your fabric.
3. Now, it is time to secure the front of the hook in place to make sure that when the garment is being worn, it doesn’t move out of position. Loop the thread over the hook you are now on the other side, Then take a stitch under the hook (the width of the hook), so you come up above it. Repeat this step two to three times to secure the hook in place.
4. Now, you can secure the other end of the hook, the one with the two holes. If you secured this part with tape earlier, remove the tape now. Once again, loop the thread over the hook so you are at the other end but instead of stitching up as we had been, bring the needle up through one of the little holes of the hook.
5. Next step is to stitch from the outside edge of the hole to the front with an end knot or button hole stitch. Keep the hook in position by holding the other hole in place.
Start your stitch on the outer wire edge of the hole, and stitch under it to come back up through the hole. Do not pull the thread completely taught, instead, stop the stitch when you have a small loop of thread left. Put your needle through this loop, front to back (make sure the loop isn’t twisted), and pull the thread until it is tight against the wire. This creates a small knot at that point.
Repeat this process three to four more times so that the stitches nestle next to each other instead of on top of each other. This will look nice and keep that area from becoming a bump of thread which could be uncomfortable for the wearer.
1. To find the best position for the eye, put it on the hook and hold the garment closed next to the hook (both wrong sides facing you). Line everything up so you know exactly where the eye will go and then place it back about 1/16” - ⅛” from the edge. When you are wearing a garment, there is a bit of pull on the closure. If you don’t move the eye a bit back from the edge, it will be visible and you may also have a bit of a gap there.
2. The eye, which is a small piece, moves even more than the hook when sewing, so you may wish to tape it down in place temporarily (make sure to test that the tape doesn’t ruin your fabric), while leaving the holes of the eye free to sew around. You can also mark 2 dots through the little holes to position it correctly and keep the position while attaching it. I used a heat erasable fabric marker. It has a fine enough tip and erases easily.
5. Like we did with the hook, we’ll want to secure the eye at the edge of the garment so that it doesn’t wiggle around. To do that, once you have stitched the holes of the eye, put your needle down into the last hole you were working on and come up next to one side of the front of the eye piece. Make one to two stitches across this wire and then do the same with the other side. When both sides are stitched down, finish off like you did with the hook.
We also have an online manual with instructions on how to sew the different hook and eye closures and attach the various fasteners and closures included in the box. Scroll through to the section that covers the type you wish to learn about. Interested in other types of closures? We also carry colorful plastic snap closures in the Madam Sew Store.
I hope this tutorial helps in finishing your projects in a more professional way and that you are having a lot of fun making beautiful things for yourself and your loved ones!
Happy Sewing!
An
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