When I was in college, I had several friends ask me to iron one article of clothing or another. Whether it was her pants or her shirt (or a last minute formal date’s dress shirt!) I was there for the rescue.
My husband is going out of town on business tomorrow, and we realized he didn’t have any dry-cleaned shirts. We didn’t have time to run to the dry cleaners, so I washed and ironed several shirts for him.
I think I iron shirts better than the dry cleaners. I put my love into them. And I kinda have to, haha. My work is scrutinized by the highest standards…my husband!
Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I thought I’d post a tutorial on here. I hope you find this helpful!
You’ll need:
a sturdy ironing board with sufficient padding
iron with steam capability
heavy spray starch
Step 1:
Spray the inside of the collar. Iron BOTH sides (don’t cheat!).
Step 2:
Grab one of the sleeves and lay flat on the ironing board. Decide whether you want the seam to be on top (facing the front of the shirt) or below (facing the back of the shirt). Fix accordingly. Starch and iron. Carefully flip over; starch and iron. Repeat on other sleeve.
Step 3:
Starch and iron the shoulders of the shirt. Any minimal wrinkling that arises can be easily fixed at the end.
Step 4:
Starting with the breast pocket area, carefully starch and iron the rest of the shirt. Make sure shirt is taut so as to not create unwanted creases. Fix any minor wrinkles that may have formed in the process (see Step 3, above).
Step 5:
Carefully hang the shirt. You’re done!
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Hope says
Hi there!
I enjoyed seeing you at my blog today. Thanks for stopping by.
Good Post.
I used to do most of the ironing at home when I was a young. My husband job also required him to wear ironed shirts, so I usually ironed him a shirt every morning (I know; if I were a really great wife, I would have at least a weeks worth iron and hanging in the closet). Ironing can be a fun job when you’ve got plenty of time, and it does feel good to see the finished product. Yes?
Jane Avila says
Yes it does. My biggest problem is getting started. But once I do I’m on a role. I have like fifty pluse pieces to iron right now. Better get going.Jane
John says
Having ironed my own laundry for over 20 years, to include my Army uniforms, I enjoyed reading your post, but would only make one comment. I agree that you should start ironing your shirt by ironing the collar, but I would recommend that you iron the back of the collar first. The reason? Have you ever started to iron a white shirt and find that your iron needs cleaning? Nothing is more frustrating than finding this out when you least want to and now there is a mess on your collar that forces you to wash the shirt before you even get to wear it. If you start on the back of the collar and find that you need to clean the iron, you can now clean the iron before finishing your ironing job, and hopefully, still wear the shirt because no one is going to see the back of your collar. Hope this makes sense. :o)
Robyn says
The part I always get wrong and could use some help with is, how hot should the iron be set at, should the steam be on for all types of items, and how much starch should I spray on?
Thanks for the post!
Ash says
Hey
Very interesting post.i have to iron my husband’s shirts for everyday wear and i find it the most cumbersome task of the day.
No matter how much i try the final shirt always has countless wrinkles on it.i dont know where i go wrong
P.s. I dont have a steam iron but i spray with water before ironing.
Any suggestions?
Season C says
Hi there! Great post, very clear. The only thing I would change is to use the wide end of the board rather than the pointy end for ironing the body of the shirt. It will go faster, because you don’t have to reposition it as often. And reduces the chance of wrinkles. Thanks!
Mariann says
I have not tried this yet, but a friends mom told me that she had to iron her daughters’ Catholic school uniforms every day (and this was a long time ago, I’m sure when irons weren’t as good as they are today). She said she would put them in the dryer and then take them out while still damp. She would then put them in a plastic bag and put them in the refrigerator over night. In the morning she would iron them , and they would turn out beautifully and they were easier to iron as well. I always buy Rowenta irons (although my last one broke after a year, but Costco let me return it and I bought a new one). This same woman told me to soak grapes and blueberries for 5 minutes in a solution of 1/4 cup vinegar and 3/4 cup water. Drain but do not rinse. Store in the fridge as usual, and they will last so much longer – it really works!!!