The main reason I bought that TM Lewin shirt was because it fastened with cufflinks. It’s quite rare to find women’s shirts with double cuffs (unless you want to splash out more than I can currently afford), so I was really pleased to have spotted it.
In the shop the cuffs are fastened with little plastic studs, so of course I then needed to make myself a pair of cufflinks. I was going to follow the Martha Stewart tutorial, but a quick rummage around in the Shed turned up some slightly more sturdy components.
These are two pairs of buttons, as per Martha Stewart’s directions, but instead of being joined with thread loops I used metal jump rings from my jewellery-making supplies. All four buttons have shanks rather than holes, so this seemed like a more appropriate solution than joining them with thread.
The top buttons are about an inch across, and covered in offcuts of silk from the waistcoat and bow tie. The bottom buttons are about a centimetre across, and are the same as the buttons on the waistcoat. I also managed to find larger versions of the same buttons for the trousers and the jacket. So there you go – custom cufflinks to match your outfit for the price of four buttons and a couple of little metal rings!