You wash, you dry, So do you iron?

[petek]

I've never minded doing the wash but ironing is something else so I do my best to get stuff out of the dryer pronto and avoid it as best possible. But sometimes you can't avoid it. For dress slacks I bought one of those electric pant pressers a number of years ago, that solved that problem. I've had a few irons since setting out on my own starting out with a nothing fancy dept store brand, then I got a West Bend cordless in the late 80's loved it but got tossed when leaks developed. Since I hated the chore so much I figured well if I have to do it I'm going to get the best danged iron (read fun) I can find.
That led me to purchase what I thought for an iron expensive Philips Azur 90, cost about $100. For early 90's it has lots of bells and whistles, auto shutoff, very steamy, anti-calc something for treating the water inside, burst of steam, self-cleaning and most of all a retractable cord,,yay. Very happy with that purchase but still don't like ironing. Now I see there's plenty of cordless models out there from Maytag and Panasonic etc..plus the ones with a separate water tank via hoses, don't have the setup for that. What does everyone else use? BTW it took me years to find that EZ On spray sizing makes ironing a lot less of a chore...funny my mom never used it.

 

[frigilux]

I used to iron EVERY shirt, from dress to casual. Then, about 6 months ago, I stopped---for reasons which aren't quite clear to me. Now, I dry no more than 4 shirts at a time and pull them out & hang them up immediately. My dress shirts turn out quite well; the casual 100% cotton shirts sometimes require a touch-up pressing.

I have a Rowenta Professional iron. It steams like crazy, but it likes to spit if I fill it more than half full of water.

I want to get a steamer to use on dress slacks, suits, etc. I've seen models that look like scaled-down models used at dry cleaners for about $200.

 

[veg-o-matic]

Ironing...

Is for the birds! I can remember in the 60's, my mom ironing my dad's white dress shirts almost every afternoon. Then when permanent press came in, she threw the iron out the window, shouted "hallelujah" and never looked back. I think I get my ironing gene from her!
Not that I haven't tried--I used to iron my dress shirts but 10 minutes later they all looked like I'd slept in them. Tried doing them damp, using starch or sizing and they always looked a mess.
Now I pay a nice little woman $1.30 each to launder and iron my shirts. Youall probably know what a cheapskate I am, so why this extravagance?
Because I'm even lazier than I am cheap. Can you imagine?
I will still do curtains and stuff like that that don't go to the cleaners. And now that I have a nice PINK vintage Sunbeam iron, I may do a little bit more. It's all in the tools, boys.
Anyone have a grandma (or mother) that ironed sheets and pillowcases? I think my grandmother ironed everything that came off the line. She also changed all her curtains 4 times a year with the seasons.

veg, who always does as little as possible

 

[jasonl]

In a word, NO

When I moved into my trailer in 2001, my mom gave me an iron. It was never powered up.

If you get your clothes out of the dryer at the right time and use the proper cycles, there's no need.

 

[gansky1]

All about the tools...

Tea towels, pillowcases, hankerchiefs, many shirts, pants, etc. were sprinkled after laundering, rolled, placed in a plastic bag and refrigerated overnight when they were ironed (on Tuesday) one by one. I have a friend that irons all of his bedding, cloth napkins, etc. I don't iron as much as all that, but I do get a wild notion once in a while and do the pillow cases, tea towels, etc. when I have time. This is rare, but I do love the scent of ironed linens, especially if they were line dried.

I have several vintage irons and a couple of modern Rowentas, which is what I usually use but I should try out some of the Sunbeams and GE's now and then...

 

[peterh770]

I used to iron, when I had a life (I know that sounds like a contradiction). But when I bought my first laundromat with a cleaners next door, the task quickly shifted to the cleaners. He goes a great job; I sure don't mind paying! Now I only iron when the collars of the shirts I wash myself go screwy. I use a plain old B&D steam iron.

 

[cehalstead]

ironing

Grandma and Mother both ironed anything that might have a wrinkle in it, short of bath towels, but the kitchen towels were ironed and folded weekly. I use a Black & Decker Classic (an old GE design). I like the look, feel and the weight of it, plus it gets hot like an iron should for cotton. I also have a Betty Crocker dry iron (still in box) bought at an antique store a few years ago for $12.00. I never have plugged it in, but it appears to have never been used.

 

[scott55405]

I do very little ironing. Most of my stuff is fine as it's washed, the only thing would be the occasional shirt touch up, or ironing of table linens, and that's done at the time of wearing or use, since if I were to iron them and then place them in the closet, they'd probably mess up again anyway by the time I went to wear them. Creased pants, which I only occasionally wear, go to the cleaners, as would dress shirts if I wore them. I can do dress shirts but for the cost of having them done it's not worth my time and effort. Creased pants just never work out for me, always wind up with double creases or something not right.

At home, we did a lot of ironing. My grandma did hers and my mom and grandma worked on ours. Bed linens, table linens, dish towels, boxer shorts, pocket tees (which my dad wore to work in summer), work shirts, Sunday shirts, kids clothes, all were ironed. We pretty well kept on top of it although I don't know that it was ever really done. It was generally worked on during soap opera hours.

 

[cadman]

Down with Ironing!

I don't mind the shirts so much, lots of starch! But the pants, oh the pants.....
Luckily, I have my GE Steam & Dry Iron with listings for Orlon, Zefran, Creslan and Kodel! No guessing at temps here!

Cory

 

[scott55405]

...so Cory, which of those four wonderful miracle fibers are most of your pants made of? ;-)

 

[petek]

Re steamers

Rather than buy clothes specific steamer.those ones they sell and Linen & Things you can do just fine with petty much any little hand held one. I've one of those little Steamettes. They were always hawking them at trade shows and fairgrounds along with the Ginsu knives and miracle slicer/dicers. That little thing does a fairly decent job and is so small you can pack it in your suitcase which I always used to do when I travelled. Better though are the Shark/EuroPro type,,lots of steam and they're great for getting the grotty grease in tight spots on your appliances with all the attachments they come with.
Why on earth though would someone iron underwear and socks.. I've a friend who does that for her hubby and son..find it hard to believe but she does

 

[drmitch]

Wrinkles-R-Us

I dislike iorning also, but I occasionally forget to unload the dryer! Then I have to iorn or go wrinkled!

 

[toggleswitch]

Iron? What's an iron.

There are two things in life I wont't do. Ironing is one of them. LOL LOL LOL.

Even without my own kids (big surprise eh? LOL)I've dealt with my nieces' diapers, spit-up and vomit, and partially chewed food right out of the mouth ... a little soap and water and I'm just fine.

Ironing, on the other hand, could kill me I think.
All shirts go to the dry-cleaners for laundering. Expensive? yes. Worth it? Absolutely.

My iron is a B&D "The classic" which is the good old fashined GE re-badged. Honestly i'd buy something with a stainless steel sole-plate. But for the three times a year I press something I can't even get the aluminum sole-plate to discolor or clog with minerals.. LOL

..if you're nice to me I'll tell you the other thing I won't do...at the convention ...in person / LOL

Regards,
Steve

 

[cadman]

Scott...... Has to be Fortrel!

Cory

 

[launderess]

Did someone mention Ironing!!

Love it, love it, lovvve it!

Sheets, shirts, bed linens, jeans the list is endless. Yes I'm one of those that iron almost everything that comes off the line. Well will draw the line at men's undershorts (growing up had a neighbor who would get her own back at her husband by puttting starch in his shorts). Nothing feels, smells and looks better than freshly laundered/ironed linens, shirts, and clothing.

Laundry that looks crumpled soon after ironing was not ironed properly. If the items are too damp after being ironed, they will look crumpled afterwards. Also proper starching helps, but use the boiled or powder type; spray starch is horrible for laundry.

After ironing laundry should always be aired (overnight if possible), before being put away. If this is not done, again laundry will look crumpled and can cause mold/mildew to grow.

My ironing arsenal?

Vintage Proctor Never-Lift Iron
Vintage Mary Proctor steam/dry iron
Vintage GE steam/dry iron
Vintage JC Penny's steam/dry iron
T-Fal Turbo-Glide steam/dry
Pfaff Ironer
Vintage Thor Gladiron
Spartan clam shell dry press
Elna - ElnaPress dry press
Jiffy Steamer
Rowenta Travel Steamer
Custom built ironing table
Vintage Mary Proctor ironing table with flip-down side
Vintage Seymour Ironing board
Vintage sleeve board
Vintage Vin-Max puff iron

As you can see place great store in vintage ironing equipment. Modern irons are not heavy/do not get hot enough IMHO to do the job correctly. All our bed and table linens are pure cotton and linen, thus need a really hot and heavy iron to get to the point. Also do not really use steam that much, but do things the way grandmother did, that is dry iron dampened laundry. On any given day you'll find clear plastic bags in my fridge full of dampened laundry waiting to be ironed.

Modern ironing boards are a even bigger joke than modern irons. Darn things wobble and shake about, fighting every attempt to position laundry correctly. As someone posted, the right equipment makes a world of difference.

Launderess

 

[bethann]

NO!

 

[petek]

Laundress

How do you mix up ironing starch? How much water to how much corn starch?, And boiling it? That sounds like a job for my Ronson Cook'n'Stir blender. don't want any lumps.

 

[maytagbear]

Iron? Only at

Gunpoint!

For me, as long as it's clean, and smells good, that's quite enough. I'm hyper about stains, not about wrinkles.

The few times I entertain, I will iron the linen tablecloth, but as for everything else, no freaking way!

My mother knew how to iron, but hated it, and we had, for many years, a elderly lady who ironed to supplement her Social Security.

Mom never taught me to iron.

I have a Black and Decker, with automatic shutoff.

I've looked at Rowenta irons, but they are far too expensive for my minimal use.

When I was in college, I had her previous iron, a GE, and would wrap a cheese sandwich in foil and "grill" it that way. Linen, about 5 minutes a side.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[david]

Oh, I love to iron...

NOT!! anyway, I don't mind it, but its one of those pesky little tasks I'd just as soon hurry up and finish. Only iron shirts and slacks; everything else can get folded and put away. I have a GE "light and easy" S-S-D iron I bought from Walmart brand new almost 20 years ago; it's one of the last irons made by GE itself; shortly after B&D bought GE's small appliance division.

Most of the time I pull the clothes out of the dryer when the buzzer sounds and they are always wrinkle free. I try to hang up immediately, but sometimes I get lazy and don't. This is when I need the iron. I agree with Laundress about the ironing boards, they are rickity nowdays. My starch? Spray and Starch from Texcise. I can't tell the difference in starches very well, never could. I've never washer starched with Niagara or stove starched with Faultless. Probably won't at this point in my life!

 

[launderess]

Starch

There are several ways,

One, Faultless or Argo laundry starch - These are old fashioned "hot or cold" corn starches. The hot method involves boiling and a bit of cooking, then adding the hot starch mixture to cool water. Almost like making a roux. The mixture is either then poured into the washing machine during the final rinse, or items are dunked into the starch mixture. Stiffness depends on how much you dilute the starch mixture with water. This method is how nurse's caps and nun's headgear get that really stiff/stand up by themselves feelings. FWIW, hear this is the way many Texans like their jeans starched.

Two, buy Faultless or Linit liquid starch and either add the correct dosage to the rinse water, or mix with water to make "spray" starch. To get the really stiff look as above, one needs to use the starch full strength. Many housewives would dip collars, cuffs, and formal shirt fronts in the liquid starch instead of making up starch baths from powder.

Powdered starches can be hard to find, but many stores sell the liquid versions. Usually they are on the lower shelves near the fabric softener.

After laundry is starched, one allows it to dry (line or dryer), then sprinkle with water, roll up and cover with plastic/put in a plastic bag, cover with a damp cloth and allow the starched laundry to sit for several hours. This is to allow the moisture from sprinkling to evenly distribute throughout the laundry. You want the laundry damp, but not too wet. If the laundry is too wet the iron will stick to the starch and you may burn whatever you are ironing.

While ironing keep the starched items either in the plastic bag/under damp cloth to keep it from drying out. It is also good to keep a good spray bottle handy to spritz stubborn wrinkles, and or rewet areas that have dried before you got to iron them.

You can learn how to sprinkle laundry by reading many ironer/iron manual from the the era when everthing was ironed. Some women just used a bowl of warm water,others any of the fancy bottles and caps sold for the purpose. IIRC some vintage automatic dryers came with a sprinkle attachment one filled with water and fitted inside the dryer. As the drum rotated, laundry would get sprinkled.

Finally must say again, there is simply no comparison between properly starched laundry done via the methods above versus spray starch. Spray starch mostly sits on the surface of the fabric, where it flakes off and burns easily as one irons. Soaking/rinsing items in a starch bath allows starch to evenly penetrate all areas of the cloth, making for better results.

Launderess

 

[tlee618]

Call me crazy but I too really don't mind ironing and do seem to get a sense of accomplishment from it. I do use pant stretchers for slacks which cuts out the ironing completely. I also use the Argo cooked starch on curtains. It just puts such a beautiful finish on the fabric. I agree with others that there is such a wonderful smell to linens that have been ironed. I have the professional Rowenta iron and love it. Terry

 

[DADoES]

My current iron is a GE / Wal-Mart *exclusive* Model 169153 Series A1030. Whatever all that means, LOL. It has a retractable cord, non-stick soleplate, adjustable steam, and burst-of-steam. I make it a point to use the thing as seldom as possible. The grandmother *insists* on doing what bit of ironing I have -- about half my shirts are cotton casual. She tends to get upset if I don't take the stuff to her ... although sometimes, on the rare occasion that I have the time, I do tackle the items myself. She has a built-in ironing board in a bedroom, and doesn't care for my floor-standing model AT ALL. She calls it a "jumping jack@ss."

 

[petek]

I'm not sure how old my ironing board is..

but it is wooden. I got it back around 75 from my best friends granny when I moved into my first apartment. She probably thought good-bye to bad rubbish..but I'm still using it today..thankfully I hadn't tossed it in a moment of sanity.

 

[westie2]

My mother, grandmothers and aunts all had ironrite ironers from the late 40's. All had Maytag wringer washers. Mother was the hold out on automatics until 1963. Washed on Mondays, line dry, used pant strechers and ironed on Tuesdays. Our shirts were so stiff the arms stood out had to wear tee shirts underneath to keep from chaffing.

With 6 children and both my wife and I working full time the dryer was our iron. At age 12 we had all our kids doing their own laundry. If on a school day nothing to wear found the cleanest and dropped in the dryer with a fabric sheet and 10 minutes and you wear it and wash after school was our motto.

Most generally we did lay out clothes the night before for school. Thank goodness for uniforms when we lived in New Orleans all 6 were in school then.

 

[kenmore1978]

ironing

I recently bought a Panasonic iron with the retractable cord (that was a big issue for me, always had cord problems with previous irons) and all the safety things, though I virtually never iron. I'm the type that like to be prepared and have the right tool, even if it only gets used very occasionally. I only iron things that look like the need to be ironed after coming out of dryer or being line dried. In practice, this tends to be silk and linen shirts, and ties. I have spray starch and sizing, but have virtually never used them. Again, I like having it on hand "just in case". I also have a GE hand steamer and a little Westinghouse ironer meant to put the crease in trousers while they are on hangers and to press ties. Looks like a giant wallet.

 

[jaxsunst]

I Iron

I iron everything that needs it. But, since discovering and reading this site, I have experimented with the different cycles and setting on the Kenmores and I iron a lot less than I used to.

I have two irons, a Rowenta "Power Glide", it is OK, but the water filler backs up on it and you can only put water in a few drops at a time. I also have a B&D Electronic, it is heavy, and has "wait" and "ready" lights to indictate temperature. It is my favorite.

 

[veg-o-matic]

Maybe it's just me...

Here's a quote from toggleswitch: "There are two things in life I wont't do. Ironing is one of them. LOL LOL LOL."

Am I the only one who's curious about the other thing? True, I have a guess, but still.

When one of you conventioneers finds out, would you report it to me, please? TYVM.

I am curious (veg)

 

[toggleswitch]

Viscious Gossip

Sigh.... SMILE WHEN YOU SAY THAT VEG!!!! LOL ROFL

You know there is only one thing to say about viscious gossip,

I LOVE IT!!! LOL ROFL

Finally..... someone admits to getting my twisted sense of humor. Either that or out of politeness it has been ignored, to date.

What is the difference between viscious and evil?

Viscious: Oh NO baby you can't go out dressed "LIKE THAT",
Evil: Uh Huh you look "FINE" sweetie.

Who loves you baby?

 

[mrsalvo]

Yes, I iron all my dress shirts and press most anything I wear
to work, also some casual shirts. I used to take them to the
cleaners all the time but realized I'm spending so much money
into my wardrobe that it wasn't worth it.
I do hang my jeans out to dry and that gives the feel of being
ironed. I love that.
My mother could iron clothes in no time at all and have them
looking better than any commerical cleaners could produce. I
don't know how she did it so fast and so good. I wished I was
that fast.

 

[appnut]

Do I iron, no. In fact H*** NO!! House guests get frustrated sometimes when they wish for an iron. I do "dryer iron" or steam in the bathroom. Travel wrinkles averted.

And veg, I'll be more than happy to see if I can find out what that other thing Steve doesn't do LOL. Maybe it's wash windows. We already know he's not pumping iron.