The present invention relates to the fastening of buttons, usually, though not necessarily. to one or more panels of fabric. One particular use of buttons is on relatively heavy-duty jackets or coats, where the fabric is relatively thick. To accommodate the fabric thickness when fastened, the fastening of the button to a fabric panel is made in such a manner that the button is supported on a shank of thread, created by a loose looping of threads to attach the button to the fabric followed by the winding of further thread around the looping threads, known as whipping. Referring now to Figure 1 , it is known to fasten a button 10 having a pair of apertures 12 to a panel of fabric 14 by looping a thread 16 through the apertures 12 in the button and (using a needle) through the fabric 14 at points in register with the respective apertures to create, in respect of each pair of apertures, two 'runs' of parallel thread 18, 20 extending from the fabric 14 to a button aperture. While, once tied off properly, the thread 16 will retain the button 10 upon the fabric 14 the button is not retained in a manner which optimally enables it to be handled by a wearer. Accordingly, subsequent to the tying-off of the looping thread, a "whipping" operation takes place whereby a further thread 22 is wrapped around the runs 18, 20 of thread to create a relatively stiff shank 24. Although to illustrate the principle in Fig. 1 the thread is shown loosely wound, in practice the thread 22 is wound tightly around the runs 18, 20 which has the effect of pulling them together and also of tightening them, while the thread 22 additionally has the function of acting somewhat in the manner of spacing the button 10 and fabric apart. Traditionally, the whipping thread 22 is, when the operation is undertaken by hand, performed with the same thread as is used to create the runs 18, 20 and is then tied-off manually. More recently, a practice has developed whereby a thermo- fusible thread is used for the whipping operation which is then heated until the thermo-fusible element in the thread melts. Once the heated shank has cooled down, a stiffer and more robustly tied-off shank is created.

Embodiments of the present invention provide alternative manner of create a fastening for a button having an elongate shank. A first embodiment of the present invention provides a method for fastening a button to a panel of fabric comprising the steps of looping a thread having at least a thermo-fusible element between the button and the fabric panel to create at least two runs of thread between the panel and the button; gathering thread from the runs into mutual contact and applying heat to the shank to melt the thermo-fusible element of the runs of thread. Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 2 is a perspective view-of-a-first-stage-in-a process accordingly to an-embodiment of the present invention;

Figures 3A and 3B is are perspective views from different angles of a further step in a process according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

Figures 4 and 5 show tools used in a further stage of the process according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring now to Figure 2, a button 40, here having the form of a simple, planar disc comprises a two pairs of apertures 42. The button 40 is attached to a panel of fabric 44 by means of a looping thread 46 which has one or more thermo-fusible component filaments. The thread 46 is looped through a pair of the apertures 42 in the button and (using a needle) through the fabric 44 at points in register with the respective apertures and back around through the apertures to create, in respect of each pair of apertures 42, two 'runs' of parallel thread 50a, 50b extending from the fabric 44 to a button aperture. Thus, the two thread loops used to fasten the button 40 results in four thread runs 50. The embodiment has been illustrated using a button 40 with two apertures however other configurations are equally possible; buttons with two pairs of apertures are popular; but any button design which may be fasted to a fabric panel by thread is suitable, including, for example, a button having no apertures but instead a single loop through which thread may pass.

Referring now to Figure 3 when sufficient loops have been completed with thread 46 in order to ensure that the button 40 will be fastened to the fabric with the requisite strength, the thread loop 46 is tied-off and the button 40 is then twisted about an axis A (which extends largely parallel with the thread runs 50) to create a shank 48 on the end of which the button 40 is retained. This rotation causes twisting of the thread as the runs 50 wind around each other which causes each of the individual pieces of thread from each of the runs 50 to come into closer contact with other pieces of thread. In the illustrated embodiment the button is twisted by 360° but the extent of twisting will depend upon the thread 46 and the number of thread loops 46 in the runs 50,

Traditionally, the looping of the thread 46 is performed so that the 'stand off' distance D between the fabric 44 and the button 40 along the axis A (which extends largely parallel with the thread runs 50) is selected to be sufficiently large to create a shank 48 of sufficient length accommodate whatever thickness of fabric with which, in use, the button 40 is intended to engage. In the illustrated embodiment the looping of the thread is desirably of a sufficient length that the subsequent reduction in the stand off distance D as a result of twisting of the button 40 can be accounted for, meaning that the initial stand off distance D (i.e. the stand off distance. prior-to twisting) is likely to be slightly larger than the distance ultimately desired.

Referring now to Figs. 4A and 4B, once the twisting process has reached the point where firstly all of the threads are in sufficiently close contact, and secondly the shank is sufficiently tightly wound, the shank 48 is heated. Heating of the shank 48 is performed, in the present embodiment, by a heating iron. In Figure 4A, there is shown a heating iron for use on buttons which have only a relatively short shank, the iron 70 having a shaft 72 of heat-transferring medium (in the present example, steel) in which is formed an arcuate recess 74. In use, the arcuate recess is place adjacent the shank 48 to melt the thermo-fusible elements of the thread 46 forming the shank 48 to melt. The heating will typically be at a temperature which is sufficiently hot to cause the thermo-fusible elements of the thread to melt while, simultaneously, not damaging either the fabric of the panel or the button. One preferred embodiment uses temperatures, applied via a heating iron of suitable configuration, of between 120 and 180 Celsius.

Once the melting process has been completed, the shank is removed from between the tines, whereupon the melted thread rapidly resets to create a relatively stiff button shank without whipping. Figure 4B shows a heating iron 80 for use with a longer shank which has a shaft 82 of heat transfer medium which, at its distal end, comprises a pair of forks 84.

Although a preferred embodiment provides that the thread of the runs is held into mutual contact during the melting process by twisting, this is not essential. For example, the thread may be held into contact by the action of a suitably configured heating fork. Further, a preferred embodiment uses thread which includes thermo-fusible and non-thermo-fusible elements; this is not essential and a thread which is fully thermo-fusible may, if desired, equally be employed.