When ironing fabric that is especially wrinkled, wet a cloth, wring it out, and rub it along the fabric as you iron. This method adds a little moisture without making it too wet and works much better than even a steam iron. Your clothes will look like they just came from the cleaners!
No ironing board or room for one? Iron your clothes over small square or round pillows. Placing the fabric over the pillows to iron is perfect for corners and hard to reach spots that need stretching out.
My sister and I were away and she had a meeting to go to. Her shirt was quite wrinkled. After hanging it in a steam filled bathroom she used her hair straightener to touch it up. It worked good in a pinch.
Hubby found an electric pants presser for $20 at a thrift store. I am learning to use it to "press" his khaki work pants, which come out of the wash all wrinkled. The press is not supposed to DO that. I find I can more or less iron out pants with it while watching TV. This makes it a labor-saving device for me and hubby can't complain about me avoiding ironing his cotton pants anymore! (Any excess wrinkling can be dealt with by using a wrinkle spray of 1/2 water and 1/2 fabric softener.) $20 is cheap, but I had seen some in eBay for less than $100.
When ironing ribbons that are difficult to lay flat try holding the end of the ribbon down with your thumb and pull the iron towards you. It's much easier than trying to push the iron forward over an unruly and wrinkled ribbon.
Instead of dampening the clothing you are ironing, try spraying your ironing board's cloth cover. It will spread out the moisture more evenly. Or, toss wrinkled clothing into a dryer with a damp towel before ironing. Wait a few minutes and the clothing should be damp and ready to iron.
For heavily wrinkled jeans, iron them on a damp towel. It will create steam on both sides and iron the jeans much faster. This also works well on thick cotton clothing, like sweatshirts.
When ironing on a regular ironing board, most of us use the narrowing of it and never think about the wide end. For ironing men's shirts I use the narrow end for the collar cuffs and the shoulder ironing the endside of each first and then the outside. I then switch to the wide end to iron the large pieces, the button first then the back and this is where it really pays off and the the placket with the buttonholes on it and it really looks nice. My hubby says every bit as nice as the cleaners and much cheaper. You'll find other things to iron on the wide end as you get use to it.
Use some sort of a pressing cloth when ironing delicate fabrics and don't use high heat. Lightweight cotton towels work well as a pressing cloth. Just lay the pressing cloth on the item you wish to iron and it will help protect it from the heat.
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I use deionised water in my iron because the water round here is so hard. I add a few drops of lavender oil to the water, shake it up well and then put it in my iron. I also use tap water with lavender oil in a spray bottle. You could use any essential oil, but I like lavender and it's the cheapest.
By attilathehen. (Guest Post)08/17/2008
Clothing Ironing Tips