A man who had spent years noticing tiny holes forming in the front, lower area of his T-shirts turned to a Facebook group devoted to obscure questions for answers. He said the holes kept appearing near his waist, not where a belt would normally scratch, and that he had ruled out seat belts, laundry machines and dryers because the damage always showed up in the same spot. In his post, he wrote, “Almost all my T-shirts have small holes in the front, near the waist.” He added, “I don’t wear belts. It has confused me for years, and I mean years.”
The discussion quickly produced a long list of possible culprits, including washing machines, dryers, trouser zippers, seat belts, kitchen counters, worktables, shopping carts, pets, rings snagging the fabric, and even moths or other insects. But the article says the simplest explanation is usually the correct one, and in this case the likely cause is the metal button on jeans.
According to the explanation, a thin T-shirt worn over jeans can be pressed repeatedly between the protruding button and hard surfaces such as a kitchen counter, table, sink edge, or work surface. The friction weakens the fibers at exactly that point, first creating a tiny hole and then enlarging it over time until the shirt is visibly damaged.
The suggested prevention is to place some kind of barrier between the button and the shirt. Examples given include small silicone button covers, tucking the shirt in slightly when working near counters, or simply avoiding repeated pressure on the same area against hard surfaces. The article notes that not every small hole comes from a jeans button, since low-quality fabric, laundering, zippers, jewelry, and ordinary wear can also cause damage, but repeated holes in the lower front of a shirt strongly point to the button underneath.
