Hi everyone, in this video we're going to take a look at installing rivets. So we have different sizes and different heights or different uses depending on the depth of the fabric or the use of the rivet. Some rivets will snap together and once you compress that tight, you want it flush to the garment. It's just decorative. For others, you want a little bit of space, like for an overall buckle. So you want to be able to hook that loop around the rivet. that comes up above the fabric. So we have a few different tutorials to show you. Are you ready? Let's jump on in and get started.
To set your rivets, we're going to need some tools. There are two different parts that come into play when you're going to do this process. One is punching the hole and the second is compressing the cap and the post together.
For punching the hole, I recommend a few options.
- The Crop-o-odile Eyelet Setter tool (Amazon).
- A traditional hole punch.
- A professional rotary punch (Hobby Lobby), which has several sizes around the dial for different size rivets.
- An awl for very tiny rivets.
- The punch that comes with your post and anvil Rivet Setting Tool Set that you would pound with a hammer.
- There are also custom ones available for really tiny holes.
To set or install the rivet there are also a few options.
- The most traditional way to set a double cap rivet is with the setting tool. It's the post and the anvil. They both have the dome shaping so that you can set both of those pieces without causing any denting in either the post side or the cap side. The drawback to this is it's loud and you have to use a hammer and you're pounding to do that part.
- Depending on the rivet that you're using you can use a crop-o-dile for the ones that we have at Pixie Faire that work with the overall buckles because the post side actually has an indented hole inside it. You can use the setting on the crocodile to compress that together and it works fine. You can also use that for the teeny, tiny, little eight millimeter overall buckles if you wanna use the little rivet that comes with that!
- If you want to set a rivet that has a smooth post and cap, then you're going need to use the traditional post and anvil, or you can use the Prim brand eyelet setter pliers and two sets of the rivet kits to hack a tool to create a super easy way to set the rivets by hand and I'll show you that at the end of this video.
How Does A Rivet Work?
When a rivet goes together you have the side with the post and the side with the cap and they fit together and they'll snap lightly before you use the tool to compress it.
Rivets come in a variety of sizes. For doll clothes projects, I recommend using 3/8" (8mm) or smaller sizes. You can find overall buckle sets at Pixie Faire, each set comes with several pairs of hooks and the rivets.
In the video I also show a few different types of Rivets
- 1/4" (6mm) smooth double cap rivets from Wawak
- 6mm rhinestone rivets from Hobby Lobby
How To Install The Rivet
- Using the desired hole punch tool, set to the appropriate size, punch the hole. Place the post side through the back of the hole. Flip it over, put the cap on. You can hear that click so it's secure enough to hold it to put under the compression area.
- Using the desired rivet setting tool, place the post and cap flat against the two smooth fittings. Compress the tool or tap the hammer to compress the cap and post together.
How To Make A Custom Hand Setting Rivet Tool
After a bit of research and a lot of trial and error I came across this hack using the Prim brand eyelet pliers and the Prim brand rivet kits ( I found these on Amazon). Using the attachments in the rivet kit in combination with the pliers, I am now able to set a smooth rivet with this easy to use hand-tool. Yay!
This works with a variety of sizes, even the super tiny ones!
So there you have it. Those are the tips and tricks that we have for installing rivets. I hope you feel empowered and ready to try these projects on your own.
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