There are only four things you need to start a button making project:

1 – A button press (also called a button machine or button maker)
2 – A circle cutter
3 – Some button making supplies for the appropriate button sizes you desire
4 – The right kind of paper for button making

Then, once you have the supplies, there are only three steps after that. (See…the further along you go, the fewer steps you have, and the easier it gets!)

1 – Design your buttons – this can be done by hand or on a computer using ready-made button design graphics. Plus, you can make buttons from graphics that you cut out from printed material like books, photos, and magazines. The options here are endless. You can embroider fancy fabric covered buttons or take a family picture and make photo buttons, for instance. 

2 – Cut out your graphics using a circle cutter.

3 – Place the button supplies (shell, back, graphic, and mylar) into their appropriate dies. Then just pull the handle twice and you’re done!

And guess what? Only 2 steps after that! (See…from 4, to 3, to 2…easy as could be.)

1 – Figure out what you are going to do with your new buttons. Fundraiser? Button Business? Campaign promotion? Church promotion? 

2 – Then plot your next button making rendezvous. ☺

So what are some ways that button making especially useful during the summer?

Summer Camp

Do you help run a summer camp or know someone who does? Do your kids attend summer camp? If so, think about how useful a button machine and some pinback button supplies could be. Whether for use as nametags for camp counselors, or as nametags for kids so the counselors can quickly learn their names, personalized ID buttons are both fun and functional.

Vacation Keepsakes

Most families go on their vacations during the summer when the kids are out of school. And if your family is anything like ours, you almost always come back with 3-5 pictures out of the multitudes taken that stand out above the others as truly capturing a magical vacation moment.

Why not create keepsake photo buttons or magnets? They are easy to make and can help you remember a great vacation long after you’re home (and presumably wishing you already back on vacation!)

Cause Awareness

As we all know, buttons are a great way to promote causes. One of the best venues to promote causes is during get-togethers, whether they be for church, school, or even the neighborhood. And there is no better time to plan an outing than during the summer, when everyone can enjoy the great outdoors.

If there is a cause you want to promote (i.e. recycling, or “going green”, or a proposal at school, etc.) plan a get-together at an organization you are a part of or at home, and give everyone buttons they can wear out around town. Especially if your group is filled with like-minded people, it probably won’t be too hard to get them excited about participating.

And finally…

Back to School!

That’s right…it won’t be too long before the summer is over and the kids are ready to go back to school. Button supplies and button makers make great gifts for teachers and schools, should you be looking for a way to show your support (or even just to curry a little extra favor for your student!). Or how about making customized name buttons for the teachers at your child’s school? These can be extremely helpful, especially during the first few weeks of school when so many new faces are scurrying about the hallways.

These are just a few ideas for summer-specific uses for buttons. What other summer button maker ideas can you think of? Please share in the comments section.

So in this post, we are going to quickly outline the five button making supplies you need to get started:

1 – First, obviously you need a button making machine.   This should not come as a surprise, unless you have an uncanny ability for turning your hands into rotating dies and can then press the button parts together with some part of your head.  Yeah, I didn’t think so either.

The question is, which button maker is right for you?  You can get a standard button machine and have a variety of size chooses or to pick from; or, if you are looking to make fabric buttons, you can get a fabric button machine that is specially made for creating fabric-covered buttons.

2 – Once you have your button machine, the next thing you need to consider is parts and supplies. Obviously if you buy a 1″ button machine, you need parts that fit a 1″ button machine.  If you have a 1.5″ button machine, you need parts to fit that size, and so on.  Find a merchant who has a variety of button supplies for all types and sizes and get the ones that are appropriate for you.

3 – A circle cutter is probably going to be your next consideration.  There are three different types of circle cutters: adjustable circle cutters, punch cutters, and high volume paper cutters.  Make sure you choose the one that fits your needs and level of button making sophistication.

4 – Next, the question is how will you design your graphics?  You can certainly create and customize your own graphics using programs like Photoshop, but some button merchants actually provide free graphics and design CDs when you purchase one of their complete button making systems.  American Button Machines, for instance, does this.  When you purchase a button making system of any size or type, the good folks at ABM actually throw in Artistic Creations CDs on the house.  Talk about making button making easy!

5 – Finally, this isn’t really a supply, but more of a suggestive hint: you need to know what you are doing!  While it is very easy to learn how to make buttons, and anyone can truly do it, it never hurts to have a little bit of help along the way.  American Button Machines has many resources and videos on their website that assist in the process of learning how to make buttons.  Even better, they have start a blog called The Button Blog that provides regular hints, tricks, and tutorials for how to make buttons, and then excellent ideas for what to use buttons for once they are made.  Also, most places will send an instructional CD along with your new button maker.  ABM includes theirs for free!

With these five supplies and ideas in mind, you are read to spread your wings and fly out into the wonderful world of buttons!