My second favorite household chore is ironing. My first being hitting my head on the top bunk bed until I faint. –Erma Bombeck
Screenwriting is like ironing. You move forward a little bit and go back and smooth things out. –Paul Thomas Anderson
Take that ironing and have it back in an hour! One hour, you hear? –Drizella in Cinderella
Ironing! Yep, we Wenches find no shortage of things to talk about, and we’ve declared all sorts of surprising subjects to be blog-worthy, especially if there’s some historical significance in it somewhere. Recently we were chatting about the value (OK, and serious lack of) in ironing—which, lo and behold, turns out to have an interesting history in everyday life across cultures and centuries.
The Wenchly interest in ironing (mostly intellectual, to be sure) began when Nicola mentioned that she’d just finished a manuscript and had sent it off to her editor (cheers to Nicola!), and that she was currently ironing like mad—“Needs must!”—to catch up on housework neglected in the natural process of meeting a deadline. Cara/Andrea commented that ironing and laundry tasks are pretty relaxing compared to finishing a book, while Jo said that while occasionally something may need ironing (something rarely worn *g*), she “quite likes ironing while listening to an audio book. I find it soothing.” Pat added that if her husband bought shirts that needed ironing, she made him take them to the dry cleaners or do them himself—and he soon learned to look for wrinkle-free tags.
“I have an iron, but got rid of my full size ironing board,” Mary Jo said, finding a little one that attaches to the side of the dryer and can be flipped up if ever ironing is desperately needed. This may be once every three or four years.”
“I used to iron more—things can get crumpled hanging in the wardrobe," Anne told us, “but I do recall a day where I spent a whole afternoon ironing and watching some video on TV – it was relaxing and hypnotic, and I still remember the scent of the hot iron on freshly sun-dried cotton. I remember it because I got so carried away, I even ironed the sheets!!! This was a once only event in my life.”
“I possess an iron,” Joanna said, “which sits in lone splendor up on a top shelf until I need my outfit to go play 'author' in. There are folks who iron everything. They have creases in their bluejeans. If I were writing contemporary I'd use that as a defining aspect of the character.”
Joanna also shared that she lived in West Africa at one point, and had a maid there “who ironed every bit of cloth in the house, always, to kill the eggs of tumbu flies, which we had in great numbers. A byproduct of this health and safety routine was that I never looked so neat.”
“At last! A practical reason for ironing,” said Andrea. Certainly if there was ever a reason to drag out the iron, tumbu flies would be it. We’d be ironing like mad (and bleaching, washing, scrubbing . . .).
So, probably like most of you, ironing is not real high on our Wenchly to-do lists, but we do appreciate its finer points—the back-and forth motion of ironing and the careful work of eliminating wrinkles can be very soothing, clearing the head and allowing some thinking time. Neatening up clothing while reducing the laundry pile can create a sense of order and accomplishment—and bringing a little order into some chaos can create a sense of peace and mindfulness. And the familiar smell of a starched, freshly laundered shirt under a hot iron can be nostalgic and comforting.
My grandmother had a set of small flatirons which her own mother had heated on a coal stove before pressing clothing with these remarkably solid, heavy little things. I have my grandmother’s antique irons now, and I use them for bookends and doorstoppers, and they’re perfect for that (just don’t drop one on your foot!). Jo’s mother used similar irons too, heating them on the big stove plate. “As she grudgingly accepted technology,” Jo said, “she’d say that they worked the best because of the weight.” And Andrea’s mother, an artist and bookbinder, had several of those old heavy iron irons too, which she found in antique stores and used as weights for bookbinding, to press the paper signatures before sewing them together and making the spine backing.
But before there were electric steam irons (and dry cleaners!)—and before there were flat, heavy irons made of iron, how did people neaten their clothing? Did they care, way back when, if their tunics and sarks, their skirts and petticoats and frills, or their curtains and bedsheets and bits of embroidered cloth were wrinkled? You betcha.
Historically it's not clear where ironing absolutely began, but it probably started as soon as someone noticed that a hot stone dragged over a wrinkled cloth smoothed the fabric out and made it look a whole lot better. The simple science of applying heat and pressure to a piece of fabric—such as a hot iron—involves the separation and straightening of the molecules and fibers in the cloth, which then stay straight and neat for a little while—until the wearer bends and creases the fibers again, requiring more laundering and pressing.
Romans, for example, were very particular about their laundry techniques—soaking clothes in great tubs of urine to clean and bleach them—and likely had some pressing methods as well. The Egyptians liked plenty of pleats in their mostly white tunics—and it's a fair bet they found a way to crease those pleats. We do know that the Chinese and other Asian cultures found a way, very early, to press and smooth cloth by stroking the cloth with hot pans filled with coals.
Viking women used smoothing boards made of stone or whalebone, beautifully 
shaped and decorated with carvings, along with smooth polished stones (sometimes made of heavy glass) that were probably heated as well and then rubbed over cloth (presumably with the use of some kind of protective hot pad for the hand!) to remove wrinkles. Busy trade routes from the northern countries into Asia and the Mediterranean and elsewhere, and back again, brought fine silks and linens into high-ranking Viking households. Considering the care that 
Viking women took with many household details, and the symbolic and ritualistic importance placed on even mundane tasks in Viking society, it is not surprising that beautiful smoothing boards and stones have been found in several graves belonging to Viking women.
Glass and stone smoothing tools were used in the medieval era as well. Some of them, called slickenstones, were artistic carved objects, and the principle would have been the same as the Vikings and Chinese used—rubbing a heavy, heated object over dry or dampened cloth.
I 
n the 16th and 17th centuries, when frills and great starched, lacy ruff collars were all the rage for the well-dressed noble or merchant, goffering irons began to appear—metal tubes on elongated stands with handles. The tubes were heated and applied to starched linens and laces in intricate ways to produce the remarkable architectural frilled collars and cuffs so mandatory to fashion then. The starching, creasing and pressing process must have taken the laundress or tailor simply forever to do–and one must wonder how comfortable the things were to wear.
The advent of the true iron—great heavy triangular chunks of iron fitted with
handles—came about by the 18th century, and these were used well into the 20th century. Some of the
irons were hollow, with hot coals put inside, while most were of solid iron and set on hot plates and stoves and on heaters specifically made for heating several irons at once. The secret of ironing with a true flatiron is to heat several in rotation, and as one cools, grabbing another to keep the work going – a very effective upper body workout.
Artists often painted women ironing clothes—finding the subject to be not only a typical everyday activity, but one that could express the simplicity, patience, strength and
perseverance of women, and the poetic visual metaphor of good work well done. The subject often appears in 18th century genre painting—beautifully documenting and detailing the tasks of daily life.
In the 19th century, Degas, among other artists, repeated the theme of women ironing in beautiful variation, exploring a theme of strength and simplicity, simply and poetically observed in shapes and color blocks of cloth and table and sturdy women bathed in textured, ambient light—while Picasso’s exploration of a woman ironing evokes a tortured soul more than observant simplicity.
In the artworks, the ironing is 
done on tables of various shapes and sizes. In 1858, the first ironing board, shaped to better fit shirts, sleeves and so on, was invented, and a folding model followed soon after. Electric irons were first invented in 1882 by Henry Seeley, who called it an "electric flatiron.“
So, all because Nicola chose to do her ironing after finishing her most recent book, there’s a basic history of ironing! Who knew that it was not only a necessary household chore, but one filled with craftsmanship, artistry, peacefulness and simplicity that not only enhanced the lives of people long ago, but gave artists a thoughtful, beautiful subject—and after doing all that research, I’ve concluded that ironing is not so bad after all.
What is your stance on ironing? Are you an ironing master, an appreciator, a meditator? Does it serve your sense of order and soothe your spirit—or do you go to great lengths to avoid it? Which art image above matches your ironing personality — lady's maid and craftsman, peaceful elegance, or tortured ironing misery? And if you were a Viking woman with a beautifully carved dragon-head slate and a polished stone on hand, would you let the wrinkled tunics pile up in the corner?
Susan, who hardly ever irons . . .
Amazing history of a simple but recurring task. I was fascinated with the pictures of women ironing.
I’m one of those whose iron sit in splendor in my walk-in closet with the ironing board stuck behind boxes and a shoe rack. My fancy suits and fussy blouses go to the cleaners. I’ll pull it out to iron clothes that I have failed to rescue from the dryer, a major incentive to tend to laundry promptly.
Does anyone remember their mothers sprinking the laundry so that it would steam? This was before steam irons and built-in sprayers. I can remember the scent–part downy, part fusty even now.
Amazing history of a simple but recurring task. I was fascinated with the pictures of women ironing.
I’m one of those whose iron sit in splendor in my walk-in closet with the ironing board stuck behind boxes and a shoe rack. My fancy suits and fussy blouses go to the cleaners. I’ll pull it out to iron clothes that I have failed to rescue from the dryer, a major incentive to tend to laundry promptly.
Does anyone remember their mothers sprinking the laundry so that it would steam? This was before steam irons and built-in sprayers. I can remember the scent–part downy, part fusty even now.
Amazing history of a simple but recurring task. I was fascinated with the pictures of women ironing.
I’m one of those whose iron sit in splendor in my walk-in closet with the ironing board stuck behind boxes and a shoe rack. My fancy suits and fussy blouses go to the cleaners. I’ll pull it out to iron clothes that I have failed to rescue from the dryer, a major incentive to tend to laundry promptly.
Does anyone remember their mothers sprinking the laundry so that it would steam? This was before steam irons and built-in sprayers. I can remember the scent–part downy, part fusty even now.
Amazing history of a simple but recurring task. I was fascinated with the pictures of women ironing.
I’m one of those whose iron sit in splendor in my walk-in closet with the ironing board stuck behind boxes and a shoe rack. My fancy suits and fussy blouses go to the cleaners. I’ll pull it out to iron clothes that I have failed to rescue from the dryer, a major incentive to tend to laundry promptly.
Does anyone remember their mothers sprinking the laundry so that it would steam? This was before steam irons and built-in sprayers. I can remember the scent–part downy, part fusty even now.
Amazing history of a simple but recurring task. I was fascinated with the pictures of women ironing.
I’m one of those whose iron sit in splendor in my walk-in closet with the ironing board stuck behind boxes and a shoe rack. My fancy suits and fussy blouses go to the cleaners. I’ll pull it out to iron clothes that I have failed to rescue from the dryer, a major incentive to tend to laundry promptly.
Does anyone remember their mothers sprinking the laundry so that it would steam? This was before steam irons and built-in sprayers. I can remember the scent–part downy, part fusty even now.
And then there were the women who ironed their hair flat… It’s still done in some parts of the world!
That Henry Robert Morland painting (the woman in blue and white) is gorgeous.
I grew up with a mother who was a wardrobe mistress in the theatre, so I did A LOT of ironing for her backstage, earning some extra money. I’m no expert ironer, but there’re a lot of worse “houseworky” things, in my opinion!
And then there were the women who ironed their hair flat… It’s still done in some parts of the world!
That Henry Robert Morland painting (the woman in blue and white) is gorgeous.
I grew up with a mother who was a wardrobe mistress in the theatre, so I did A LOT of ironing for her backstage, earning some extra money. I’m no expert ironer, but there’re a lot of worse “houseworky” things, in my opinion!
And then there were the women who ironed their hair flat… It’s still done in some parts of the world!
That Henry Robert Morland painting (the woman in blue and white) is gorgeous.
I grew up with a mother who was a wardrobe mistress in the theatre, so I did A LOT of ironing for her backstage, earning some extra money. I’m no expert ironer, but there’re a lot of worse “houseworky” things, in my opinion!
And then there were the women who ironed their hair flat… It’s still done in some parts of the world!
That Henry Robert Morland painting (the woman in blue and white) is gorgeous.
I grew up with a mother who was a wardrobe mistress in the theatre, so I did A LOT of ironing for her backstage, earning some extra money. I’m no expert ironer, but there’re a lot of worse “houseworky” things, in my opinion!
And then there were the women who ironed their hair flat… It’s still done in some parts of the world!
That Henry Robert Morland painting (the woman in blue and white) is gorgeous.
I grew up with a mother who was a wardrobe mistress in the theatre, so I did A LOT of ironing for her backstage, earning some extra money. I’m no expert ironer, but there’re a lot of worse “houseworky” things, in my opinion!
My mother claims she likes ironing, but of all the various housework tasks, I really dislike it most – even more than cleaning windows. I haven’t touched my iron in years, though I sometimes have my helper iron a few selected items. With modern fabrics, fortunately the need for ironing is much lessened, and towels or sheets do their work perfectly well if I just fold them after air-drying. Strangely, I rather like the washing, hanging and and folding part, just not the ironing.
My mother claims she likes ironing, but of all the various housework tasks, I really dislike it most – even more than cleaning windows. I haven’t touched my iron in years, though I sometimes have my helper iron a few selected items. With modern fabrics, fortunately the need for ironing is much lessened, and towels or sheets do their work perfectly well if I just fold them after air-drying. Strangely, I rather like the washing, hanging and and folding part, just not the ironing.
My mother claims she likes ironing, but of all the various housework tasks, I really dislike it most – even more than cleaning windows. I haven’t touched my iron in years, though I sometimes have my helper iron a few selected items. With modern fabrics, fortunately the need for ironing is much lessened, and towels or sheets do their work perfectly well if I just fold them after air-drying. Strangely, I rather like the washing, hanging and and folding part, just not the ironing.
My mother claims she likes ironing, but of all the various housework tasks, I really dislike it most – even more than cleaning windows. I haven’t touched my iron in years, though I sometimes have my helper iron a few selected items. With modern fabrics, fortunately the need for ironing is much lessened, and towels or sheets do their work perfectly well if I just fold them after air-drying. Strangely, I rather like the washing, hanging and and folding part, just not the ironing.
My mother claims she likes ironing, but of all the various housework tasks, I really dislike it most – even more than cleaning windows. I haven’t touched my iron in years, though I sometimes have my helper iron a few selected items. With modern fabrics, fortunately the need for ironing is much lessened, and towels or sheets do their work perfectly well if I just fold them after air-drying. Strangely, I rather like the washing, hanging and and folding part, just not the ironing.
I advised my husband in pre-marriage counseling that I do not and will not iron. To this day (almost 13 years later) he iron’s his own clothes and any of mine that might need it. Needless to say I perfer clothes that do not need ironing.
I advised my husband in pre-marriage counseling that I do not and will not iron. To this day (almost 13 years later) he iron’s his own clothes and any of mine that might need it. Needless to say I perfer clothes that do not need ironing.
I advised my husband in pre-marriage counseling that I do not and will not iron. To this day (almost 13 years later) he iron’s his own clothes and any of mine that might need it. Needless to say I perfer clothes that do not need ironing.
I advised my husband in pre-marriage counseling that I do not and will not iron. To this day (almost 13 years later) he iron’s his own clothes and any of mine that might need it. Needless to say I perfer clothes that do not need ironing.
I advised my husband in pre-marriage counseling that I do not and will not iron. To this day (almost 13 years later) he iron’s his own clothes and any of mine that might need it. Needless to say I perfer clothes that do not need ironing.
I admit to wielding a mean iron when costuming ( in fact, I took an amazing class on ironing techniques from a Hollywood costumer last year!), but I NEVER iron in real life. Never.
I admit to wielding a mean iron when costuming ( in fact, I took an amazing class on ironing techniques from a Hollywood costumer last year!), but I NEVER iron in real life. Never.
I admit to wielding a mean iron when costuming ( in fact, I took an amazing class on ironing techniques from a Hollywood costumer last year!), but I NEVER iron in real life. Never.
I admit to wielding a mean iron when costuming ( in fact, I took an amazing class on ironing techniques from a Hollywood costumer last year!), but I NEVER iron in real life. Never.
I admit to wielding a mean iron when costuming ( in fact, I took an amazing class on ironing techniques from a Hollywood costumer last year!), but I NEVER iron in real life. Never.
I do remember my mother ironing and using a Coke bottle of water fitted with this odd cork topped with a sprinkle head. She used it to wet the fabric to make it steam. My father was career Air Force and she had to iron his uniforms.
I have a lovely high tech iron with automatic shut off and all sorts of fancy settings. I might use it once a year, but it is there if I need it. I take my work clothes out of the dryer immediately to avoid ironing. The clothes I take to RWA or other conferences I take to the dry cleaner.
My Mom tells lots of stories about putting the flat irons on the hearth and using them to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
When I was singing I often stood backstage and had wardrobe mistresses ironing my costumes while I wore them to the last minute before I stepped on stage.
I do remember my mother ironing and using a Coke bottle of water fitted with this odd cork topped with a sprinkle head. She used it to wet the fabric to make it steam. My father was career Air Force and she had to iron his uniforms.
I have a lovely high tech iron with automatic shut off and all sorts of fancy settings. I might use it once a year, but it is there if I need it. I take my work clothes out of the dryer immediately to avoid ironing. The clothes I take to RWA or other conferences I take to the dry cleaner.
My Mom tells lots of stories about putting the flat irons on the hearth and using them to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
When I was singing I often stood backstage and had wardrobe mistresses ironing my costumes while I wore them to the last minute before I stepped on stage.
I do remember my mother ironing and using a Coke bottle of water fitted with this odd cork topped with a sprinkle head. She used it to wet the fabric to make it steam. My father was career Air Force and she had to iron his uniforms.
I have a lovely high tech iron with automatic shut off and all sorts of fancy settings. I might use it once a year, but it is there if I need it. I take my work clothes out of the dryer immediately to avoid ironing. The clothes I take to RWA or other conferences I take to the dry cleaner.
My Mom tells lots of stories about putting the flat irons on the hearth and using them to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
When I was singing I often stood backstage and had wardrobe mistresses ironing my costumes while I wore them to the last minute before I stepped on stage.
I do remember my mother ironing and using a Coke bottle of water fitted with this odd cork topped with a sprinkle head. She used it to wet the fabric to make it steam. My father was career Air Force and she had to iron his uniforms.
I have a lovely high tech iron with automatic shut off and all sorts of fancy settings. I might use it once a year, but it is there if I need it. I take my work clothes out of the dryer immediately to avoid ironing. The clothes I take to RWA or other conferences I take to the dry cleaner.
My Mom tells lots of stories about putting the flat irons on the hearth and using them to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
When I was singing I often stood backstage and had wardrobe mistresses ironing my costumes while I wore them to the last minute before I stepped on stage.
I do remember my mother ironing and using a Coke bottle of water fitted with this odd cork topped with a sprinkle head. She used it to wet the fabric to make it steam. My father was career Air Force and she had to iron his uniforms.
I have a lovely high tech iron with automatic shut off and all sorts of fancy settings. I might use it once a year, but it is there if I need it. I take my work clothes out of the dryer immediately to avoid ironing. The clothes I take to RWA or other conferences I take to the dry cleaner.
My Mom tells lots of stories about putting the flat irons on the hearth and using them to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
When I was singing I often stood backstage and had wardrobe mistresses ironing my costumes while I wore them to the last minute before I stepped on stage.
I guess the polar vortex ate my post. Let me try this again.
I do remember my Mom using a Coke bottle fitted with a cork stopper topped with a metal prinkle thing to wet down clothes to make them steam. My Dad was a career Air Force man and my mother ironed all of his uniforms.
I have a splendid high tech iron sitting on the shelf over my washer and dryer. It has an automatic cut-off and all sorts of clever settings. I use it about once a year. I race to take my work clothes out of the dryer to avoid ironing them. The clothes I wear at conferences or special events I take to the cleaners.
My Mom tells stories of putting those heavy irons on the hearth to heat them up to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
I guess the polar vortex ate my post. Let me try this again.
I do remember my Mom using a Coke bottle fitted with a cork stopper topped with a metal prinkle thing to wet down clothes to make them steam. My Dad was a career Air Force man and my mother ironed all of his uniforms.
I have a splendid high tech iron sitting on the shelf over my washer and dryer. It has an automatic cut-off and all sorts of clever settings. I use it about once a year. I race to take my work clothes out of the dryer to avoid ironing them. The clothes I wear at conferences or special events I take to the cleaners.
My Mom tells stories of putting those heavy irons on the hearth to heat them up to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
I guess the polar vortex ate my post. Let me try this again.
I do remember my Mom using a Coke bottle fitted with a cork stopper topped with a metal prinkle thing to wet down clothes to make them steam. My Dad was a career Air Force man and my mother ironed all of his uniforms.
I have a splendid high tech iron sitting on the shelf over my washer and dryer. It has an automatic cut-off and all sorts of clever settings. I use it about once a year. I race to take my work clothes out of the dryer to avoid ironing them. The clothes I wear at conferences or special events I take to the cleaners.
My Mom tells stories of putting those heavy irons on the hearth to heat them up to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
I guess the polar vortex ate my post. Let me try this again.
I do remember my Mom using a Coke bottle fitted with a cork stopper topped with a metal prinkle thing to wet down clothes to make them steam. My Dad was a career Air Force man and my mother ironed all of his uniforms.
I have a splendid high tech iron sitting on the shelf over my washer and dryer. It has an automatic cut-off and all sorts of clever settings. I use it about once a year. I race to take my work clothes out of the dryer to avoid ironing them. The clothes I wear at conferences or special events I take to the cleaners.
My Mom tells stories of putting those heavy irons on the hearth to heat them up to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
I guess the polar vortex ate my post. Let me try this again.
I do remember my Mom using a Coke bottle fitted with a cork stopper topped with a metal prinkle thing to wet down clothes to make them steam. My Dad was a career Air Force man and my mother ironed all of his uniforms.
I have a splendid high tech iron sitting on the shelf over my washer and dryer. It has an automatic cut-off and all sorts of clever settings. I use it about once a year. I race to take my work clothes out of the dryer to avoid ironing them. The clothes I wear at conferences or special events I take to the cleaners.
My Mom tells stories of putting those heavy irons on the hearth to heat them up to press everything from bed sheets to her hair.
I’ve read about how the Romans cleaned and bleached clothing in vats of urine. I do hope they -rinsed- the garments after!
I’m not sure whether I should be ashamed or proud of the fact that my sartorial standards are so much lower than Vikings and others! As has been mentioned, many modern fabrics are more wrinkle resistant than older ones, and I do look for that. I never wear linen because it always looks messy, and I most CERTAINLY am not going to iron the item!
Thanks for the broad view of ironing, Susan. It hasn’t increased my desire to actually do it, but the subject is interesting. *G*
I’ve read about how the Romans cleaned and bleached clothing in vats of urine. I do hope they -rinsed- the garments after!
I’m not sure whether I should be ashamed or proud of the fact that my sartorial standards are so much lower than Vikings and others! As has been mentioned, many modern fabrics are more wrinkle resistant than older ones, and I do look for that. I never wear linen because it always looks messy, and I most CERTAINLY am not going to iron the item!
Thanks for the broad view of ironing, Susan. It hasn’t increased my desire to actually do it, but the subject is interesting. *G*
I’ve read about how the Romans cleaned and bleached clothing in vats of urine. I do hope they -rinsed- the garments after!
I’m not sure whether I should be ashamed or proud of the fact that my sartorial standards are so much lower than Vikings and others! As has been mentioned, many modern fabrics are more wrinkle resistant than older ones, and I do look for that. I never wear linen because it always looks messy, and I most CERTAINLY am not going to iron the item!
Thanks for the broad view of ironing, Susan. It hasn’t increased my desire to actually do it, but the subject is interesting. *G*
I’ve read about how the Romans cleaned and bleached clothing in vats of urine. I do hope they -rinsed- the garments after!
I’m not sure whether I should be ashamed or proud of the fact that my sartorial standards are so much lower than Vikings and others! As has been mentioned, many modern fabrics are more wrinkle resistant than older ones, and I do look for that. I never wear linen because it always looks messy, and I most CERTAINLY am not going to iron the item!
Thanks for the broad view of ironing, Susan. It hasn’t increased my desire to actually do it, but the subject is interesting. *G*
I’ve read about how the Romans cleaned and bleached clothing in vats of urine. I do hope they -rinsed- the garments after!
I’m not sure whether I should be ashamed or proud of the fact that my sartorial standards are so much lower than Vikings and others! As has been mentioned, many modern fabrics are more wrinkle resistant than older ones, and I do look for that. I never wear linen because it always looks messy, and I most CERTAINLY am not going to iron the item!
Thanks for the broad view of ironing, Susan. It hasn’t increased my desire to actually do it, but the subject is interesting. *G*
I have an iron, somewhere. It’s decades old. I’m not sure it even works anymore. I used to have an ironing board but it got left behind on a move and anyway there’s no good spot to store it in this apartment. I have occasionally used the iron to touch up ribbons on Christmas decorations, but that’s about it. As soon as wrinkle free clothes became available, I was done with that. I ironed my own cottons as a teen and I can’t say I was very good at it anyway. I would get distracted and daydream about space travel or something. Later on I had a day job already.
I do remember my mother and her friends doing ironing and listening to the daytime dramas on radio and later TV. Maybe if there was something interesting on the radio to listen to, it was bearable.
I have enormous respect for the women who made my life easier by doing tasks like this which men and others disdained as beneath them. I am old enough to remember that being able to type made me the person who wrote up the accounting reports because the guys couldn’t or wouldn’t use a keyboard. With computers all that changed and the stigma of knowing a keyboard has vanished. It’s a funny culture anyway that disrespects people for having a certain skill, isn’t it? You’d think we’d all be grateful rather than scornful.
I have an iron, somewhere. It’s decades old. I’m not sure it even works anymore. I used to have an ironing board but it got left behind on a move and anyway there’s no good spot to store it in this apartment. I have occasionally used the iron to touch up ribbons on Christmas decorations, but that’s about it. As soon as wrinkle free clothes became available, I was done with that. I ironed my own cottons as a teen and I can’t say I was very good at it anyway. I would get distracted and daydream about space travel or something. Later on I had a day job already.
I do remember my mother and her friends doing ironing and listening to the daytime dramas on radio and later TV. Maybe if there was something interesting on the radio to listen to, it was bearable.
I have enormous respect for the women who made my life easier by doing tasks like this which men and others disdained as beneath them. I am old enough to remember that being able to type made me the person who wrote up the accounting reports because the guys couldn’t or wouldn’t use a keyboard. With computers all that changed and the stigma of knowing a keyboard has vanished. It’s a funny culture anyway that disrespects people for having a certain skill, isn’t it? You’d think we’d all be grateful rather than scornful.
I have an iron, somewhere. It’s decades old. I’m not sure it even works anymore. I used to have an ironing board but it got left behind on a move and anyway there’s no good spot to store it in this apartment. I have occasionally used the iron to touch up ribbons on Christmas decorations, but that’s about it. As soon as wrinkle free clothes became available, I was done with that. I ironed my own cottons as a teen and I can’t say I was very good at it anyway. I would get distracted and daydream about space travel or something. Later on I had a day job already.
I do remember my mother and her friends doing ironing and listening to the daytime dramas on radio and later TV. Maybe if there was something interesting on the radio to listen to, it was bearable.
I have enormous respect for the women who made my life easier by doing tasks like this which men and others disdained as beneath them. I am old enough to remember that being able to type made me the person who wrote up the accounting reports because the guys couldn’t or wouldn’t use a keyboard. With computers all that changed and the stigma of knowing a keyboard has vanished. It’s a funny culture anyway that disrespects people for having a certain skill, isn’t it? You’d think we’d all be grateful rather than scornful.
I have an iron, somewhere. It’s decades old. I’m not sure it even works anymore. I used to have an ironing board but it got left behind on a move and anyway there’s no good spot to store it in this apartment. I have occasionally used the iron to touch up ribbons on Christmas decorations, but that’s about it. As soon as wrinkle free clothes became available, I was done with that. I ironed my own cottons as a teen and I can’t say I was very good at it anyway. I would get distracted and daydream about space travel or something. Later on I had a day job already.
I do remember my mother and her friends doing ironing and listening to the daytime dramas on radio and later TV. Maybe if there was something interesting on the radio to listen to, it was bearable.
I have enormous respect for the women who made my life easier by doing tasks like this which men and others disdained as beneath them. I am old enough to remember that being able to type made me the person who wrote up the accounting reports because the guys couldn’t or wouldn’t use a keyboard. With computers all that changed and the stigma of knowing a keyboard has vanished. It’s a funny culture anyway that disrespects people for having a certain skill, isn’t it? You’d think we’d all be grateful rather than scornful.
I have an iron, somewhere. It’s decades old. I’m not sure it even works anymore. I used to have an ironing board but it got left behind on a move and anyway there’s no good spot to store it in this apartment. I have occasionally used the iron to touch up ribbons on Christmas decorations, but that’s about it. As soon as wrinkle free clothes became available, I was done with that. I ironed my own cottons as a teen and I can’t say I was very good at it anyway. I would get distracted and daydream about space travel or something. Later on I had a day job already.
I do remember my mother and her friends doing ironing and listening to the daytime dramas on radio and later TV. Maybe if there was something interesting on the radio to listen to, it was bearable.
I have enormous respect for the women who made my life easier by doing tasks like this which men and others disdained as beneath them. I am old enough to remember that being able to type made me the person who wrote up the accounting reports because the guys couldn’t or wouldn’t use a keyboard. With computers all that changed and the stigma of knowing a keyboard has vanished. It’s a funny culture anyway that disrespects people for having a certain skill, isn’t it? You’d think we’d all be grateful rather than scornful.
Talk about nostalgia–this took me back to afternoons of ironing blouses and circular skirts, to the sounds of Eddie Fisher and the Four Freshmen. Add the scent of freshly pressed laundry and it’s really a treasured memory. (But one I wouldn’t repeat now, for sure.)
I especially liked the “Roman solution” (pun intended) for bleaching clothing. Make do with what you have is obviously an old technique. And I actually remember, as some of you probably do, too, the cork device in the pop bottle for sprinkling. Some also will remember wrapping the sprinkled clothing in plastic bags and putting it in the fridge until ready to iron. So glad this is all memory!
Talk about nostalgia–this took me back to afternoons of ironing blouses and circular skirts, to the sounds of Eddie Fisher and the Four Freshmen. Add the scent of freshly pressed laundry and it’s really a treasured memory. (But one I wouldn’t repeat now, for sure.)
I especially liked the “Roman solution” (pun intended) for bleaching clothing. Make do with what you have is obviously an old technique. And I actually remember, as some of you probably do, too, the cork device in the pop bottle for sprinkling. Some also will remember wrapping the sprinkled clothing in plastic bags and putting it in the fridge until ready to iron. So glad this is all memory!
Talk about nostalgia–this took me back to afternoons of ironing blouses and circular skirts, to the sounds of Eddie Fisher and the Four Freshmen. Add the scent of freshly pressed laundry and it’s really a treasured memory. (But one I wouldn’t repeat now, for sure.)
I especially liked the “Roman solution” (pun intended) for bleaching clothing. Make do with what you have is obviously an old technique. And I actually remember, as some of you probably do, too, the cork device in the pop bottle for sprinkling. Some also will remember wrapping the sprinkled clothing in plastic bags and putting it in the fridge until ready to iron. So glad this is all memory!
Talk about nostalgia–this took me back to afternoons of ironing blouses and circular skirts, to the sounds of Eddie Fisher and the Four Freshmen. Add the scent of freshly pressed laundry and it’s really a treasured memory. (But one I wouldn’t repeat now, for sure.)
I especially liked the “Roman solution” (pun intended) for bleaching clothing. Make do with what you have is obviously an old technique. And I actually remember, as some of you probably do, too, the cork device in the pop bottle for sprinkling. Some also will remember wrapping the sprinkled clothing in plastic bags and putting it in the fridge until ready to iron. So glad this is all memory!
Talk about nostalgia–this took me back to afternoons of ironing blouses and circular skirts, to the sounds of Eddie Fisher and the Four Freshmen. Add the scent of freshly pressed laundry and it’s really a treasured memory. (But one I wouldn’t repeat now, for sure.)
I especially liked the “Roman solution” (pun intended) for bleaching clothing. Make do with what you have is obviously an old technique. And I actually remember, as some of you probably do, too, the cork device in the pop bottle for sprinkling. Some also will remember wrapping the sprinkled clothing in plastic bags and putting it in the fridge until ready to iron. So glad this is all memory!
When I first met my husband, a broke college student, he had two shirts. Yes, two. One of the reasons I married him was that he ironed them himself. Now I have a lovely laundry room with an antique washboard on the door, an ironing board that folds down from it, a long counter that would do in a pinch, spray starch, an iron. That is, I *think* I have an iron. It’s in a cupboard. My husband now takes his stuff to the dry cleaners. The last time I used the iron was to press fall leaves and crayon shavings between wax paper for a school project. 🙂
My mother intimidated me from ironing. She was a wiz at domestic chores and could iron the wrinkle out of anything. I, on the other hand, iron wrinkles in. Such a fun post!
When I first met my husband, a broke college student, he had two shirts. Yes, two. One of the reasons I married him was that he ironed them himself. Now I have a lovely laundry room with an antique washboard on the door, an ironing board that folds down from it, a long counter that would do in a pinch, spray starch, an iron. That is, I *think* I have an iron. It’s in a cupboard. My husband now takes his stuff to the dry cleaners. The last time I used the iron was to press fall leaves and crayon shavings between wax paper for a school project. 🙂
My mother intimidated me from ironing. She was a wiz at domestic chores and could iron the wrinkle out of anything. I, on the other hand, iron wrinkles in. Such a fun post!
When I first met my husband, a broke college student, he had two shirts. Yes, two. One of the reasons I married him was that he ironed them himself. Now I have a lovely laundry room with an antique washboard on the door, an ironing board that folds down from it, a long counter that would do in a pinch, spray starch, an iron. That is, I *think* I have an iron. It’s in a cupboard. My husband now takes his stuff to the dry cleaners. The last time I used the iron was to press fall leaves and crayon shavings between wax paper for a school project. 🙂
My mother intimidated me from ironing. She was a wiz at domestic chores and could iron the wrinkle out of anything. I, on the other hand, iron wrinkles in. Such a fun post!
When I first met my husband, a broke college student, he had two shirts. Yes, two. One of the reasons I married him was that he ironed them himself. Now I have a lovely laundry room with an antique washboard on the door, an ironing board that folds down from it, a long counter that would do in a pinch, spray starch, an iron. That is, I *think* I have an iron. It’s in a cupboard. My husband now takes his stuff to the dry cleaners. The last time I used the iron was to press fall leaves and crayon shavings between wax paper for a school project. 🙂
My mother intimidated me from ironing. She was a wiz at domestic chores and could iron the wrinkle out of anything. I, on the other hand, iron wrinkles in. Such a fun post!
When I first met my husband, a broke college student, he had two shirts. Yes, two. One of the reasons I married him was that he ironed them himself. Now I have a lovely laundry room with an antique washboard on the door, an ironing board that folds down from it, a long counter that would do in a pinch, spray starch, an iron. That is, I *think* I have an iron. It’s in a cupboard. My husband now takes his stuff to the dry cleaners. The last time I used the iron was to press fall leaves and crayon shavings between wax paper for a school project. 🙂
My mother intimidated me from ironing. She was a wiz at domestic chores and could iron the wrinkle out of anything. I, on the other hand, iron wrinkles in. Such a fun post!
I didn’t learn to iron until I was around 12 and then I ironed clothes on saturday afternoons listening to the opera. It is still my faavorite time to iron if I have to. I have an iron and usually use it at least once a week. I buy permapress and supposedly wrinkle free clothes but still quite often find things need ironing,
There was a TV program on the other night about Chatsworth, IN one scene the women had to iron a hugmongous table cloth which they never could get smooth. The fabric consultant said too much starch. They were ironing with the new flat irons. I wondered that they didn’t have a mangle which many places use for large items such as sheets and table cloths( not that many people have a table as long as the one at Chatsworth.) I think I read that mangles for both wash tubs and as a ironing device have been around since the 18th century. A mangle is just a pair or more of rollers that are turned by a crank, or now, electricity.
I remember hair and clothes irons being heated on the stove. The hair irons got hot enough to burn my ears.
I was surprised that Vikings would need to iron anything as I thought their cliothes were made of skins, furs, and wool.
I agree that linen is a pain to iron though it can feel great to the touch. I can do without an iron or ironed clothes much better than I could do without my washing machine.
I didn’t learn to iron until I was around 12 and then I ironed clothes on saturday afternoons listening to the opera. It is still my faavorite time to iron if I have to. I have an iron and usually use it at least once a week. I buy permapress and supposedly wrinkle free clothes but still quite often find things need ironing,
There was a TV program on the other night about Chatsworth, IN one scene the women had to iron a hugmongous table cloth which they never could get smooth. The fabric consultant said too much starch. They were ironing with the new flat irons. I wondered that they didn’t have a mangle which many places use for large items such as sheets and table cloths( not that many people have a table as long as the one at Chatsworth.) I think I read that mangles for both wash tubs and as a ironing device have been around since the 18th century. A mangle is just a pair or more of rollers that are turned by a crank, or now, electricity.
I remember hair and clothes irons being heated on the stove. The hair irons got hot enough to burn my ears.
I was surprised that Vikings would need to iron anything as I thought their cliothes were made of skins, furs, and wool.
I agree that linen is a pain to iron though it can feel great to the touch. I can do without an iron or ironed clothes much better than I could do without my washing machine.
I didn’t learn to iron until I was around 12 and then I ironed clothes on saturday afternoons listening to the opera. It is still my faavorite time to iron if I have to. I have an iron and usually use it at least once a week. I buy permapress and supposedly wrinkle free clothes but still quite often find things need ironing,
There was a TV program on the other night about Chatsworth, IN one scene the women had to iron a hugmongous table cloth which they never could get smooth. The fabric consultant said too much starch. They were ironing with the new flat irons. I wondered that they didn’t have a mangle which many places use for large items such as sheets and table cloths( not that many people have a table as long as the one at Chatsworth.) I think I read that mangles for both wash tubs and as a ironing device have been around since the 18th century. A mangle is just a pair or more of rollers that are turned by a crank, or now, electricity.
I remember hair and clothes irons being heated on the stove. The hair irons got hot enough to burn my ears.
I was surprised that Vikings would need to iron anything as I thought their cliothes were made of skins, furs, and wool.
I agree that linen is a pain to iron though it can feel great to the touch. I can do without an iron or ironed clothes much better than I could do without my washing machine.
I didn’t learn to iron until I was around 12 and then I ironed clothes on saturday afternoons listening to the opera. It is still my faavorite time to iron if I have to. I have an iron and usually use it at least once a week. I buy permapress and supposedly wrinkle free clothes but still quite often find things need ironing,
There was a TV program on the other night about Chatsworth, IN one scene the women had to iron a hugmongous table cloth which they never could get smooth. The fabric consultant said too much starch. They were ironing with the new flat irons. I wondered that they didn’t have a mangle which many places use for large items such as sheets and table cloths( not that many people have a table as long as the one at Chatsworth.) I think I read that mangles for both wash tubs and as a ironing device have been around since the 18th century. A mangle is just a pair or more of rollers that are turned by a crank, or now, electricity.
I remember hair and clothes irons being heated on the stove. The hair irons got hot enough to burn my ears.
I was surprised that Vikings would need to iron anything as I thought their cliothes were made of skins, furs, and wool.
I agree that linen is a pain to iron though it can feel great to the touch. I can do without an iron or ironed clothes much better than I could do without my washing machine.
I didn’t learn to iron until I was around 12 and then I ironed clothes on saturday afternoons listening to the opera. It is still my faavorite time to iron if I have to. I have an iron and usually use it at least once a week. I buy permapress and supposedly wrinkle free clothes but still quite often find things need ironing,
There was a TV program on the other night about Chatsworth, IN one scene the women had to iron a hugmongous table cloth which they never could get smooth. The fabric consultant said too much starch. They were ironing with the new flat irons. I wondered that they didn’t have a mangle which many places use for large items such as sheets and table cloths( not that many people have a table as long as the one at Chatsworth.) I think I read that mangles for both wash tubs and as a ironing device have been around since the 18th century. A mangle is just a pair or more of rollers that are turned by a crank, or now, electricity.
I remember hair and clothes irons being heated on the stove. The hair irons got hot enough to burn my ears.
I was surprised that Vikings would need to iron anything as I thought their cliothes were made of skins, furs, and wool.
I agree that linen is a pain to iron though it can feel great to the touch. I can do without an iron or ironed clothes much better than I could do without my washing machine.
I have an iron and ironing board but haven’t used either in a couple of decades. I learned to iron at about 10 years old and I do remember burning myself quite a few times on the hot iron too. I also remember putting a few scorch marks in my cotton blouses. My mother had a ganglion in her wrist she said was from ironing. I don’t miss having to iron.
I have an iron and ironing board but haven’t used either in a couple of decades. I learned to iron at about 10 years old and I do remember burning myself quite a few times on the hot iron too. I also remember putting a few scorch marks in my cotton blouses. My mother had a ganglion in her wrist she said was from ironing. I don’t miss having to iron.
I have an iron and ironing board but haven’t used either in a couple of decades. I learned to iron at about 10 years old and I do remember burning myself quite a few times on the hot iron too. I also remember putting a few scorch marks in my cotton blouses. My mother had a ganglion in her wrist she said was from ironing. I don’t miss having to iron.
I have an iron and ironing board but haven’t used either in a couple of decades. I learned to iron at about 10 years old and I do remember burning myself quite a few times on the hot iron too. I also remember putting a few scorch marks in my cotton blouses. My mother had a ganglion in her wrist she said was from ironing. I don’t miss having to iron.
I have an iron and ironing board but haven’t used either in a couple of decades. I learned to iron at about 10 years old and I do remember burning myself quite a few times on the hot iron too. I also remember putting a few scorch marks in my cotton blouses. My mother had a ganglion in her wrist she said was from ironing. I don’t miss having to iron.
In the summer before Hubby went college, his mother, a nurse, broke out all her cotton uniforms, and he learned to iron. We had a maid, so I never did. Even in the Army, I traded ironing for boot shining. I There is an iron and ironing board in my house. I refuse to take ownership of them. If any ironing needs to be done, Hubby does it. After all, he’s been trained. Tweeted.
In the summer before Hubby went college, his mother, a nurse, broke out all her cotton uniforms, and he learned to iron. We had a maid, so I never did. Even in the Army, I traded ironing for boot shining. I There is an iron and ironing board in my house. I refuse to take ownership of them. If any ironing needs to be done, Hubby does it. After all, he’s been trained. Tweeted.
In the summer before Hubby went college, his mother, a nurse, broke out all her cotton uniforms, and he learned to iron. We had a maid, so I never did. Even in the Army, I traded ironing for boot shining. I There is an iron and ironing board in my house. I refuse to take ownership of them. If any ironing needs to be done, Hubby does it. After all, he’s been trained. Tweeted.
In the summer before Hubby went college, his mother, a nurse, broke out all her cotton uniforms, and he learned to iron. We had a maid, so I never did. Even in the Army, I traded ironing for boot shining. I There is an iron and ironing board in my house. I refuse to take ownership of them. If any ironing needs to be done, Hubby does it. After all, he’s been trained. Tweeted.
In the summer before Hubby went college, his mother, a nurse, broke out all her cotton uniforms, and he learned to iron. We had a maid, so I never did. Even in the Army, I traded ironing for boot shining. I There is an iron and ironing board in my house. I refuse to take ownership of them. If any ironing needs to be done, Hubby does it. After all, he’s been trained. Tweeted.
I liked to iron, it was one of the few things in life where one’s efforts are rewarded instantly with beautiful results.
I even learned to use a Mangle iron. Does anyone remember those? They were like the ones used in laundries and at one time sold for the homemaker. My mother received one and did not like it, so I got it and used it. I had burned hands a lot.
But, you can iron and watch a movie on TV or talk and still get your task completed.
I seldom iron anymore, but I still like the way things look when they have been ironed.
I liked to iron, it was one of the few things in life where one’s efforts are rewarded instantly with beautiful results.
I even learned to use a Mangle iron. Does anyone remember those? They were like the ones used in laundries and at one time sold for the homemaker. My mother received one and did not like it, so I got it and used it. I had burned hands a lot.
But, you can iron and watch a movie on TV or talk and still get your task completed.
I seldom iron anymore, but I still like the way things look when they have been ironed.
I liked to iron, it was one of the few things in life where one’s efforts are rewarded instantly with beautiful results.
I even learned to use a Mangle iron. Does anyone remember those? They were like the ones used in laundries and at one time sold for the homemaker. My mother received one and did not like it, so I got it and used it. I had burned hands a lot.
But, you can iron and watch a movie on TV or talk and still get your task completed.
I seldom iron anymore, but I still like the way things look when they have been ironed.
I liked to iron, it was one of the few things in life where one’s efforts are rewarded instantly with beautiful results.
I even learned to use a Mangle iron. Does anyone remember those? They were like the ones used in laundries and at one time sold for the homemaker. My mother received one and did not like it, so I got it and used it. I had burned hands a lot.
But, you can iron and watch a movie on TV or talk and still get your task completed.
I seldom iron anymore, but I still like the way things look when they have been ironed.
I liked to iron, it was one of the few things in life where one’s efforts are rewarded instantly with beautiful results.
I even learned to use a Mangle iron. Does anyone remember those? They were like the ones used in laundries and at one time sold for the homemaker. My mother received one and did not like it, so I got it and used it. I had burned hands a lot.
But, you can iron and watch a movie on TV or talk and still get your task completed.
I seldom iron anymore, but I still like the way things look when they have been ironed.
I can recall my grandmother showing me how to iron when I was really young, and I still follow her directions. Well, I do when I’m forced to these days 🙂
I can recall my grandmother showing me how to iron when I was really young, and I still follow her directions. Well, I do when I’m forced to these days 🙂
I can recall my grandmother showing me how to iron when I was really young, and I still follow her directions. Well, I do when I’m forced to these days 🙂
I can recall my grandmother showing me how to iron when I was really young, and I still follow her directions. Well, I do when I’m forced to these days 🙂
I can recall my grandmother showing me how to iron when I was really young, and I still follow her directions. Well, I do when I’m forced to these days 🙂
I’ve never minded ironing in itself, it’s hauling the ironing board out of the closet & then having to put it away again – I’d be much happier if I had a place it could remain set up. But we are spoiled compared to these women from the past – what an ordeal – and they didn’t have the permanent press clothes and washer/dryers that we do either!
I’ve never minded ironing in itself, it’s hauling the ironing board out of the closet & then having to put it away again – I’d be much happier if I had a place it could remain set up. But we are spoiled compared to these women from the past – what an ordeal – and they didn’t have the permanent press clothes and washer/dryers that we do either!
I’ve never minded ironing in itself, it’s hauling the ironing board out of the closet & then having to put it away again – I’d be much happier if I had a place it could remain set up. But we are spoiled compared to these women from the past – what an ordeal – and they didn’t have the permanent press clothes and washer/dryers that we do either!
I’ve never minded ironing in itself, it’s hauling the ironing board out of the closet & then having to put it away again – I’d be much happier if I had a place it could remain set up. But we are spoiled compared to these women from the past – what an ordeal – and they didn’t have the permanent press clothes and washer/dryers that we do either!
I’ve never minded ironing in itself, it’s hauling the ironing board out of the closet & then having to put it away again – I’d be much happier if I had a place it could remain set up. But we are spoiled compared to these women from the past – what an ordeal – and they didn’t have the permanent press clothes and washer/dryers that we do either!
Brilliant post out of our nattering, Susan! I vaguely remember my mother sprinkling the laundry, but I don’t remember the Coke bottle method. We never had any kind of soda. I also remember her arguing with a neighbor over the best way to iron shirts. To this day, I have no clue what the best way is–other than drycleaning!
Great discussion. I think we hit a bit of current history!
Brilliant post out of our nattering, Susan! I vaguely remember my mother sprinkling the laundry, but I don’t remember the Coke bottle method. We never had any kind of soda. I also remember her arguing with a neighbor over the best way to iron shirts. To this day, I have no clue what the best way is–other than drycleaning!
Great discussion. I think we hit a bit of current history!
Brilliant post out of our nattering, Susan! I vaguely remember my mother sprinkling the laundry, but I don’t remember the Coke bottle method. We never had any kind of soda. I also remember her arguing with a neighbor over the best way to iron shirts. To this day, I have no clue what the best way is–other than drycleaning!
Great discussion. I think we hit a bit of current history!
Brilliant post out of our nattering, Susan! I vaguely remember my mother sprinkling the laundry, but I don’t remember the Coke bottle method. We never had any kind of soda. I also remember her arguing with a neighbor over the best way to iron shirts. To this day, I have no clue what the best way is–other than drycleaning!
Great discussion. I think we hit a bit of current history!
Brilliant post out of our nattering, Susan! I vaguely remember my mother sprinkling the laundry, but I don’t remember the Coke bottle method. We never had any kind of soda. I also remember her arguing with a neighbor over the best way to iron shirts. To this day, I have no clue what the best way is–other than drycleaning!
Great discussion. I think we hit a bit of current history!
Lol, loved the post! HATE to iron, it’s a four-letter word. I have one of those hang on the back of the door boards that I obviously never use, which I determined when my daughter needed to iron material for school and I was unable to lower the board the whole way to use it since I’d put stuff up on the other wall blocking it, lol. I had to hold the board at an angle and try to iron it. 😉
Lol, loved the post! HATE to iron, it’s a four-letter word. I have one of those hang on the back of the door boards that I obviously never use, which I determined when my daughter needed to iron material for school and I was unable to lower the board the whole way to use it since I’d put stuff up on the other wall blocking it, lol. I had to hold the board at an angle and try to iron it. 😉
Lol, loved the post! HATE to iron, it’s a four-letter word. I have one of those hang on the back of the door boards that I obviously never use, which I determined when my daughter needed to iron material for school and I was unable to lower the board the whole way to use it since I’d put stuff up on the other wall blocking it, lol. I had to hold the board at an angle and try to iron it. 😉
Lol, loved the post! HATE to iron, it’s a four-letter word. I have one of those hang on the back of the door boards that I obviously never use, which I determined when my daughter needed to iron material for school and I was unable to lower the board the whole way to use it since I’d put stuff up on the other wall blocking it, lol. I had to hold the board at an angle and try to iron it. 😉
Lol, loved the post! HATE to iron, it’s a four-letter word. I have one of those hang on the back of the door boards that I obviously never use, which I determined when my daughter needed to iron material for school and I was unable to lower the board the whole way to use it since I’d put stuff up on the other wall blocking it, lol. I had to hold the board at an angle and try to iron it. 😉
Great post, Susan, and lovely pictures. It’s interesting that ironing stirs such feelings.
I posted a picture on Facebook of a nifty iron heating system, with slots for the irons around a stove, so they could keep heating. Hope this link works.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=515060878542701&set=a.147877591927700.20199.127811147267678&type=1&theater
Great post, Susan, and lovely pictures. It’s interesting that ironing stirs such feelings.
I posted a picture on Facebook of a nifty iron heating system, with slots for the irons around a stove, so they could keep heating. Hope this link works.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=515060878542701&set=a.147877591927700.20199.127811147267678&type=1&theater
Great post, Susan, and lovely pictures. It’s interesting that ironing stirs such feelings.
I posted a picture on Facebook of a nifty iron heating system, with slots for the irons around a stove, so they could keep heating. Hope this link works.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=515060878542701&set=a.147877591927700.20199.127811147267678&type=1&theater
Great post, Susan, and lovely pictures. It’s interesting that ironing stirs such feelings.
I posted a picture on Facebook of a nifty iron heating system, with slots for the irons around a stove, so they could keep heating. Hope this link works.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=515060878542701&set=a.147877591927700.20199.127811147267678&type=1&theater
Great post, Susan, and lovely pictures. It’s interesting that ironing stirs such feelings.
I posted a picture on Facebook of a nifty iron heating system, with slots for the irons around a stove, so they could keep heating. Hope this link works.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=515060878542701&set=a.147877591927700.20199.127811147267678&type=1&theater
Oh dear I think I am in a minority I really do like ironing!It is such a mindless task I can sort out chapter six arrange the menus for the week and anything else that needs thinking about and no one dares interrupt because mother is ironing and if she gets interrupted the person responcible tends to be offered the iron !!Not that I am an expert I do tend to iron in creases (why does an iron iron out creases but if you put one in by mistake it is set in for the duration?)Apart from cooking I do try to avoid all other types of housework,spiders like my house!
Didn’t they use to iron the newspapers so that the newsprint didn’t come off all over your hands ? I seem to remember my grandmother doing that.
Oh dear I think I am in a minority I really do like ironing!It is such a mindless task I can sort out chapter six arrange the menus for the week and anything else that needs thinking about and no one dares interrupt because mother is ironing and if she gets interrupted the person responcible tends to be offered the iron !!Not that I am an expert I do tend to iron in creases (why does an iron iron out creases but if you put one in by mistake it is set in for the duration?)Apart from cooking I do try to avoid all other types of housework,spiders like my house!
Didn’t they use to iron the newspapers so that the newsprint didn’t come off all over your hands ? I seem to remember my grandmother doing that.
Oh dear I think I am in a minority I really do like ironing!It is such a mindless task I can sort out chapter six arrange the menus for the week and anything else that needs thinking about and no one dares interrupt because mother is ironing and if she gets interrupted the person responcible tends to be offered the iron !!Not that I am an expert I do tend to iron in creases (why does an iron iron out creases but if you put one in by mistake it is set in for the duration?)Apart from cooking I do try to avoid all other types of housework,spiders like my house!
Didn’t they use to iron the newspapers so that the newsprint didn’t come off all over your hands ? I seem to remember my grandmother doing that.
Oh dear I think I am in a minority I really do like ironing!It is such a mindless task I can sort out chapter six arrange the menus for the week and anything else that needs thinking about and no one dares interrupt because mother is ironing and if she gets interrupted the person responcible tends to be offered the iron !!Not that I am an expert I do tend to iron in creases (why does an iron iron out creases but if you put one in by mistake it is set in for the duration?)Apart from cooking I do try to avoid all other types of housework,spiders like my house!
Didn’t they use to iron the newspapers so that the newsprint didn’t come off all over your hands ? I seem to remember my grandmother doing that.
Oh dear I think I am in a minority I really do like ironing!It is such a mindless task I can sort out chapter six arrange the menus for the week and anything else that needs thinking about and no one dares interrupt because mother is ironing and if she gets interrupted the person responcible tends to be offered the iron !!Not that I am an expert I do tend to iron in creases (why does an iron iron out creases but if you put one in by mistake it is set in for the duration?)Apart from cooking I do try to avoid all other types of housework,spiders like my house!
Didn’t they use to iron the newspapers so that the newsprint didn’t come off all over your hands ? I seem to remember my grandmother doing that.
I ejoy ironing. I learned as a five-year old, ironing teatowels and handkerchiefs (Ah, the pre paper tissue days). When I was six I got a lightweight traveling iron for my birthday and started ironing “real” clothes. I earned spending money in college by ironing shirts for guys. By the way, my mother saw to it that my brother
Earned to iron too. He was fussy even as a kindergartner about his shirts, rejecting some after wearing it down to breakfast. So h got to iron his own. At least she wasn’t an ironing fanatic like her oldest sister, who ironed underwear, socks, and terry cloth towels.
I ejoy ironing. I learned as a five-year old, ironing teatowels and handkerchiefs (Ah, the pre paper tissue days). When I was six I got a lightweight traveling iron for my birthday and started ironing “real” clothes. I earned spending money in college by ironing shirts for guys. By the way, my mother saw to it that my brother
Earned to iron too. He was fussy even as a kindergartner about his shirts, rejecting some after wearing it down to breakfast. So h got to iron his own. At least she wasn’t an ironing fanatic like her oldest sister, who ironed underwear, socks, and terry cloth towels.
I ejoy ironing. I learned as a five-year old, ironing teatowels and handkerchiefs (Ah, the pre paper tissue days). When I was six I got a lightweight traveling iron for my birthday and started ironing “real” clothes. I earned spending money in college by ironing shirts for guys. By the way, my mother saw to it that my brother
Earned to iron too. He was fussy even as a kindergartner about his shirts, rejecting some after wearing it down to breakfast. So h got to iron his own. At least she wasn’t an ironing fanatic like her oldest sister, who ironed underwear, socks, and terry cloth towels.
I ejoy ironing. I learned as a five-year old, ironing teatowels and handkerchiefs (Ah, the pre paper tissue days). When I was six I got a lightweight traveling iron for my birthday and started ironing “real” clothes. I earned spending money in college by ironing shirts for guys. By the way, my mother saw to it that my brother
Earned to iron too. He was fussy even as a kindergartner about his shirts, rejecting some after wearing it down to breakfast. So h got to iron his own. At least she wasn’t an ironing fanatic like her oldest sister, who ironed underwear, socks, and terry cloth towels.
I ejoy ironing. I learned as a five-year old, ironing teatowels and handkerchiefs (Ah, the pre paper tissue days). When I was six I got a lightweight traveling iron for my birthday and started ironing “real” clothes. I earned spending money in college by ironing shirts for guys. By the way, my mother saw to it that my brother
Earned to iron too. He was fussy even as a kindergartner about his shirts, rejecting some after wearing it down to breakfast. So h got to iron his own. At least she wasn’t an ironing fanatic like her oldest sister, who ironed underwear, socks, and terry cloth towels.
I remember my Mom sprinkling water on the white clothes and folding them into “blobs” to wet missed spots.
I also got the “pleasure” of doing the ironing some of the time. At 12ish I considered this “not my thing” but did it anyway.
I remember my Mom sprinkling water on the white clothes and folding them into “blobs” to wet missed spots.
I also got the “pleasure” of doing the ironing some of the time. At 12ish I considered this “not my thing” but did it anyway.
I remember my Mom sprinkling water on the white clothes and folding them into “blobs” to wet missed spots.
I also got the “pleasure” of doing the ironing some of the time. At 12ish I considered this “not my thing” but did it anyway.
I remember my Mom sprinkling water on the white clothes and folding them into “blobs” to wet missed spots.
I also got the “pleasure” of doing the ironing some of the time. At 12ish I considered this “not my thing” but did it anyway.
I remember my Mom sprinkling water on the white clothes and folding them into “blobs” to wet missed spots.
I also got the “pleasure” of doing the ironing some of the time. At 12ish I considered this “not my thing” but did it anyway.
SUCH a fun post, Susan! My iron is somewhere in the mudroom closet . . . I think. I have discovered a far better system at the gym (note: your gym must have a steam room) Come in wearing wrinkled sweater and skirt or pants. Work out, take said street clothes, put them on a hanger, open steam room door and hold them inside for a minute or two. Presto—works like a charm. Then head out to meet friends for dinner. The other women who see me doing this are highly impressed, LOL.
SUCH a fun post, Susan! My iron is somewhere in the mudroom closet . . . I think. I have discovered a far better system at the gym (note: your gym must have a steam room) Come in wearing wrinkled sweater and skirt or pants. Work out, take said street clothes, put them on a hanger, open steam room door and hold them inside for a minute or two. Presto—works like a charm. Then head out to meet friends for dinner. The other women who see me doing this are highly impressed, LOL.
SUCH a fun post, Susan! My iron is somewhere in the mudroom closet . . . I think. I have discovered a far better system at the gym (note: your gym must have a steam room) Come in wearing wrinkled sweater and skirt or pants. Work out, take said street clothes, put them on a hanger, open steam room door and hold them inside for a minute or two. Presto—works like a charm. Then head out to meet friends for dinner. The other women who see me doing this are highly impressed, LOL.
SUCH a fun post, Susan! My iron is somewhere in the mudroom closet . . . I think. I have discovered a far better system at the gym (note: your gym must have a steam room) Come in wearing wrinkled sweater and skirt or pants. Work out, take said street clothes, put them on a hanger, open steam room door and hold them inside for a minute or two. Presto—works like a charm. Then head out to meet friends for dinner. The other women who see me doing this are highly impressed, LOL.
SUCH a fun post, Susan! My iron is somewhere in the mudroom closet . . . I think. I have discovered a far better system at the gym (note: your gym must have a steam room) Come in wearing wrinkled sweater and skirt or pants. Work out, take said street clothes, put them on a hanger, open steam room door and hold them inside for a minute or two. Presto—works like a charm. Then head out to meet friends for dinner. The other women who see me doing this are highly impressed, LOL.
Love the history of ironing — HATE the act itself. My Hubby actually does all the ironing in our house unless I happen to be sewing. I will iron the hems etc when I am sewing something other than a last minute Halloween costume. 🙂
If anyone asks, I blame it on the childhood trauma of getting 2nd degree burns when my sister let the excitable puppy in the room while I was ironing pillowcases. Yes, one of my chores was ironing pillowcases. The pup leaped at the ironing board and I burned my arm severely when I used it to protect my body. 🙂
Love the history of ironing — HATE the act itself. My Hubby actually does all the ironing in our house unless I happen to be sewing. I will iron the hems etc when I am sewing something other than a last minute Halloween costume. 🙂
If anyone asks, I blame it on the childhood trauma of getting 2nd degree burns when my sister let the excitable puppy in the room while I was ironing pillowcases. Yes, one of my chores was ironing pillowcases. The pup leaped at the ironing board and I burned my arm severely when I used it to protect my body. 🙂
Love the history of ironing — HATE the act itself. My Hubby actually does all the ironing in our house unless I happen to be sewing. I will iron the hems etc when I am sewing something other than a last minute Halloween costume. 🙂
If anyone asks, I blame it on the childhood trauma of getting 2nd degree burns when my sister let the excitable puppy in the room while I was ironing pillowcases. Yes, one of my chores was ironing pillowcases. The pup leaped at the ironing board and I burned my arm severely when I used it to protect my body. 🙂
Love the history of ironing — HATE the act itself. My Hubby actually does all the ironing in our house unless I happen to be sewing. I will iron the hems etc when I am sewing something other than a last minute Halloween costume. 🙂
If anyone asks, I blame it on the childhood trauma of getting 2nd degree burns when my sister let the excitable puppy in the room while I was ironing pillowcases. Yes, one of my chores was ironing pillowcases. The pup leaped at the ironing board and I burned my arm severely when I used it to protect my body. 🙂
Love the history of ironing — HATE the act itself. My Hubby actually does all the ironing in our house unless I happen to be sewing. I will iron the hems etc when I am sewing something other than a last minute Halloween costume. 🙂
If anyone asks, I blame it on the childhood trauma of getting 2nd degree burns when my sister let the excitable puppy in the room while I was ironing pillowcases. Yes, one of my chores was ironing pillowcases. The pup leaped at the ironing board and I burned my arm severely when I used it to protect my body. 🙂
Ok, we moved to our current house about 7 years ago… the ironing board is still hiding in the garage… need I say more?
Ok, we moved to our current house about 7 years ago… the ironing board is still hiding in the garage… need I say more?
Ok, we moved to our current house about 7 years ago… the ironing board is still hiding in the garage… need I say more?
Ok, we moved to our current house about 7 years ago… the ironing board is still hiding in the garage… need I say more?
Ok, we moved to our current house about 7 years ago… the ironing board is still hiding in the garage… need I say more?
My grandmother taught me how to iron…and was surprised when I was good at it. My mistake. It became one of my jobs. She had a mangle in the basement and I learned how to use that too. Believe it or not, we ironed the dishtowels (she made her own, like her aprons). Long years later, I took the fancy steam iron out of the kitchen cupboard, filled the chamber and turned it on to heat. When I pushed the button to steam the wrinkles out of my suit, a hairy leg appeared! I dumped the rest of the water, and a parboiled roach came out. Yikes. We ditched the steam iron, got a plain flat iron, and some time after that I liberated myself from business suits, dresses, and ironing.
My grandmother taught me how to iron…and was surprised when I was good at it. My mistake. It became one of my jobs. She had a mangle in the basement and I learned how to use that too. Believe it or not, we ironed the dishtowels (she made her own, like her aprons). Long years later, I took the fancy steam iron out of the kitchen cupboard, filled the chamber and turned it on to heat. When I pushed the button to steam the wrinkles out of my suit, a hairy leg appeared! I dumped the rest of the water, and a parboiled roach came out. Yikes. We ditched the steam iron, got a plain flat iron, and some time after that I liberated myself from business suits, dresses, and ironing.
My grandmother taught me how to iron…and was surprised when I was good at it. My mistake. It became one of my jobs. She had a mangle in the basement and I learned how to use that too. Believe it or not, we ironed the dishtowels (she made her own, like her aprons). Long years later, I took the fancy steam iron out of the kitchen cupboard, filled the chamber and turned it on to heat. When I pushed the button to steam the wrinkles out of my suit, a hairy leg appeared! I dumped the rest of the water, and a parboiled roach came out. Yikes. We ditched the steam iron, got a plain flat iron, and some time after that I liberated myself from business suits, dresses, and ironing.
My grandmother taught me how to iron…and was surprised when I was good at it. My mistake. It became one of my jobs. She had a mangle in the basement and I learned how to use that too. Believe it or not, we ironed the dishtowels (she made her own, like her aprons). Long years later, I took the fancy steam iron out of the kitchen cupboard, filled the chamber and turned it on to heat. When I pushed the button to steam the wrinkles out of my suit, a hairy leg appeared! I dumped the rest of the water, and a parboiled roach came out. Yikes. We ditched the steam iron, got a plain flat iron, and some time after that I liberated myself from business suits, dresses, and ironing.
My grandmother taught me how to iron…and was surprised when I was good at it. My mistake. It became one of my jobs. She had a mangle in the basement and I learned how to use that too. Believe it or not, we ironed the dishtowels (she made her own, like her aprons). Long years later, I took the fancy steam iron out of the kitchen cupboard, filled the chamber and turned it on to heat. When I pushed the button to steam the wrinkles out of my suit, a hairy leg appeared! I dumped the rest of the water, and a parboiled roach came out. Yikes. We ditched the steam iron, got a plain flat iron, and some time after that I liberated myself from business suits, dresses, and ironing.
Ok. Now ask me about my other job: pegging out the lace tablecloths to dry!
Ok. Now ask me about my other job: pegging out the lace tablecloths to dry!
Ok. Now ask me about my other job: pegging out the lace tablecloths to dry!
Ok. Now ask me about my other job: pegging out the lace tablecloths to dry!
Ok. Now ask me about my other job: pegging out the lace tablecloths to dry!