Self covered buttons.

The slippery satin is murder to press over the button shapes. I tried some and gave up. I wonder whether very fine iron-on vilene on the back would make it grip? Also whether a slightly wider margin would help?

On the other hand - I had a pack of 100 metal button blanks, bought for a project which never happened. Visiting DGD (aged 9) spent several days happily using up my cotton fabric scraps to cover them, and went home with a bagful. So they have a use for entertaining fidgety granddaughters.

Elegran Thanks! It's not what I wanted to hear but it's not just me doing it wrong.

I have used them but only with finer fabric. I think it is probably the satin that's the trouble. It's quite hard to work with. I wish I could help you but I know wedding dresses have lots of quite small satin covered buttons down the back so there is obviously a way. If it was me I think I would probably obtain some silk or a finer fabric in the same colour and use that. Good luck!

I suggest you gather the rounds with a running stitch. This has previously worked for me although I haven't used them for a while. I've used plastic ones for fine fabric and metal ones for heavier fabric. Some of them have worked, others not. I'm sure the metal ones are not as good quality as they used to be - made in China etc.

I haven't used them for years but I remember getting sore fingers forcing the fabric up onto the prongs. I would definitely try elegran's and ayse's suggestions - either or both.

The plastic ones are quite easy to cover, as suggested stitch round with a running stitch and pull up around the shank, press the top bit down hard using something like a metal bobbin to give it some pressure. Slippery fabric might be stabilised with a light weight interfacing as someone else mentioned. If all else fails you can get them done for you, not too expensive. I use D and M buttons in London or bridalcoveredbuttons which is online, you send them some of your fabric and they will do them pretty quickly.

This is a good tool, by the way. You can make five different sizes of buttons with it. www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Prym-Self-Cover-Button-Making-Press-Tool-For-Button-Sizes-11-15-19-23-29mm/151293041555?_trksid=p0.c100204.m3164&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140407115239%26meid%3D8383249143068788375%26pid%3D100204%26prg%3D20140407115239%26rk%3D10%26rkt%3D20%26sd%3D151019734763

Not sure why that is such a long link. Hope it works.

Thank you all for the advice. Suzied and Ayse the running stitch did it, and there is a knack to doing them. I now have six covered buttons, they are not perfect but will be fine for a costume with a sort of WW1 look. One more to finish.

The instructions on the packet were very basic indeed and did not give the sort of tips you need, like which side round to put the back plate. On the card they are held on with the plate back to front. It is certainly not as straight forward as they claim.
There is also a knack to using the press to push the back plate on instead of putting it on straight and whacking it hard I sort of rolled the press around the plate and it went on really well.
Thank you all again.

GN is just great for such problems.