An upholstery technique that uses twine or threads to hold several layers of materials together. Buttons at either side help to prevent the threads cutting through the fabrics and sinking back into the upholstery. On the face side, decorative buttons are used and on the underside, flat and plainer ‘buttons’ that may be solid, real buttons, or might be a thick fabric or stiffening that does the same job.
* In bedheads and upholstered chair seats the layers are already fixed by other technique and so buttoning is primarily decorative, although deep buttoning does help to secure layers that have to bend around corners, especially concave inner seat backs.
* Loose pads for window seats or a squab cushion on a wooden or cane seat very often rely on the buttoning to secure the layers, although buttoning is primarily chosen for decoration.
* Fabric covered walls and ceilings, whether buttoned or not, create quiet, calm and warm spaces. Adding extra layers of materials that create depth will absorb and soak up almost every sound, stopping it dead. Buttoning is a way of fixing or holding the layers together but also serves to break up the surface creating depth and secondary pattern.
* Padded and buttoned doors, ceilings and dividing walls are very often chosen for soundproofing a music room or study
* The choice and placement of buttons is up to the designer’s artistry, as the pattern, number and style of the buttons together with the depth of the buttoning affect the overall look.
* Many different styles can be created– traditional or contemporary, tight, deep or free.