Button Band for Masks

A few weeks back I posted pics of my little button bands that I made to hold my mask so I don't have to put the elastic over my ears. (After one day of that, I knew I needed a work around.) 

No, I haven't made any more lately. But, in case I ever want to make some more, I find it's a good idea to write down what I did so I can replicate it. I have found that posting these patterns on the blog makes it way easier for me to find later than writing it down on a piece of paper. I mean, I have knitting binders and such, but finding anything in them... 

For this pattern, you need a bit of yarn. I didn't measure how much, but it was a scrap, basically. All of the materials I already had lying around, so this is not the sort of thing you need to go out and buy for. But for completeness sake, I'll write this out.

Materials:

• Length of worsted weight yarn (cotton seems to work well, but my first attempts were acrylic)
• Size 8 (5.0mm) needles
• 2 shank style buttons
• 4 inch length of 20 gauge wire (folded in half)
• Scissors
• Tapestry needle

The main trick to this is to knit the buttons onto the piece. While sewing the buttons on works just fine, there's the extra ends to weave in, and I wanted to save a couple steps. 

How to attach the buttons:

Knit to the spot where the button is to be attached. 

Remove the next 2 stitches from the left needle. Slip both stitches onto the wire. 

Then thread through the button shank. 

Once through, remove both stitches from the wire and place back onto the left needle. (This can be a bit fiddly, so putting both stitches back onto a smaller needle may work more easily.) 

Then knit each stitch individually.

Pattern:

Cast on 17 stitches.

This is worked in garter stitch (knit every row).

Knit 3 rows.

On the 4th row: Knit 2 stitches, attach button over the next 2 stitches, knit to the last 4 stitches (knit next 9 stitches), attach button over the next 2 stitches, knit 2.

Then knit 3 more rows.

Bind off.

And that's it. Wind in the ends from the cast on row and the bind off row, and it's complete. 

It took me less than an hour to make one this way. It was well worth the effort to save my ears.