Buttonholes are holes in fabric that are paired with functional buttons (as opposed to decorative buttons) that serve as fasteners. Buttonholes may be either made by hand sewing or automated by a sewing machine. A buttonhole may be replaced by a loop of cloth or rope, such as in a Mandarin button. The etymology of the term buttonhole came from buttonhold (originally a loop of string that held a button down). History Buttonholes for fastening or closing clothing with buttons appeared first in… (More on Buttonhole)