I started washing my fancy pancy clothes instead of dry cleaning them (if they were machine washable) but have to deal with wrinkles. I bought a clothes steamer, which works fairly well, but it just isn’t good enough for many items. They still look wrinkly.
My cheap iron didn’t do much better.
So how can I get dry-cleaner like quality wrinkle-free clothes? Should I try a pressurized steam iron? Which brand? Or an actual clothes presser? Do those even exist for the home market?
I know that home versions exist…something like 2 feet long, give or take. I heard that they work just like the industrial version from the lady that showed it to me, but no verification.
Best wishes,
hh
First, make sure your cheap iron is hot enough. Assuming that’s not the problem, you may want to try a heavier iron.
Check your ironing technique. Front, back, leg, other leg. You need to move the pants around, and use the pointy end of the ironing board.
If you still aren’t happy with the results, try putting a damp cloth between the pants and the iron.
After all that, if you still feel you really need a press, here’s several to choose from.
I didn’t look to see if these were actually available or not but it looked pretty cool to me.
I can’t find one if they are. I don’t know what I’d pay, but if it were within reason I’d try one.
If machine washable and dryable: I use the lowest setting on my dryer and time it. I know that after 15 minutes or so, I need to take my shirts out and get them hung. do not let things sit in the dryer - its better to take them out when they are slightly damp still (there’s a perfect point - damp is still a little too wet, but I don’t know what word would be drier than damp but not dry. Moist? Humid?)
If you are letting them dry all the way in the dryer, and letting them sit - that’s 90% of your problem right there. When I wash my work clothes, I run the washer, load them in the dryer, and find a chore that is not too involved that keeps me in the area, until my stuff is done and hung. I open the dryer and check how dry stuff is regularly, to make sure I am not over drying it.
I tend to iron in more wrinkles than I iron out - so I had to find the right way to dry things so I wouldn’t have to iron as much.
Yep. Remove the dried clothes promptly and hang them up, which will allow most of the clothes to cool down without wrinkling. With any luck, most of the wrinkles will never appear, and the few that do might fall out under the garment’s own weight. When you let dried clothes sit in the dryer, they’re all bunched up, and the wrinkles will set.
Steaming is good for relaxing wrinkles, but you won’t get nice sharp creases. You also won’t get “hard” wrinkles out. Get a HEAVY iron, and PRESS DOWN. Also, use spray starch, or spray sizing (sold in the laundry aisle). Ironing is a skill, and like any skill, you have to practice it.
The fiber content of the clothing will make a difference, too. Polyester is generally a pain to press/iron. Back in the 70s, I used to put white vinegar in the water when I was sewing stuff, and that did make a somewhat decent crease. Nowadays I just avoid buying polyester whenever I can. Rayon and acetate are even worse than polyester. Rayon drapes wonderfully, takes up and keeps color beautifully, and has a tendency to shrivel to doll-size if you breathe on it. Acetate will quite literally melt when pressed with an iron that is turned on.
Get and wear decent quality cotton. That’s what I do.
I can’t wear wool, or work with it, so I don’t know what to tell you about it.
I love Rowenta irons and I bought this steamer at an auction the other day. It works wonderfully, generating huge amounts of steam so you can go through multiple layers.
As for ironing tips, the first would be to take your time. You can iron in more wrinkles than you take out if you’re not careful. Get your iron hot enough - it’s not going to scorch if you keep it moving. use starch or sizing. That gives you a crisp finish.
StG
Good hot iron should do the trick
I don’t really know anything about this subject, or what kind of steamer you already have, but you might want to check out today’s woot.
I found that using spray starch (recommended by someone on the SDMB!) when I ironed made a big difference.