Do You Iron?

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If this topic seems to come out of left field, well it sort of does. Monday I stared at the blank screen trying to figure out what to write for today’s post. I’m fortunate in that I seldom stare at the blank screen without something to say. But Monday, that’s where I was. What did I do?

The usual answer is just to type something. Anything.  But I mean I had nothing.

So, I set up my ironing board on the counter near our utility area (It’s not a room.)

 IMG_5724(a very tiny table-top kind because we don’t have the wonderful built in board we had in our former house of 20 years. I loved that board!)

I had washed clothes and had a number of tops more than in need of ironing. You know how sometimes you can get away without ironing shirts. (Fortunately, my husband has moved to almost all of those shirts.) But some shirts, no matter how fast you bring them out of the dryer, they need the touch of an iron. I had a couple of shirts hanging clean in my closet that I didn’t take time to iron when I washed them last week and thus wasn’t wearing.

 IMG_5725

My excuse for not ironing last week is it was so, so, so hot. It was our second week of 100-degree temps. But this week, our highs are only in the mid to low 90s. Perhaps you’re thinking this is not a big difference. Well, it’s not a big difference, but let me assure you it is a significant difference. And we’ve even had rain. Almost unheard of in August.IMG_5722

On Monday, I spent 45 minutes ironing those 7 shirts and 2 sets of capri pants. I did not break a sweat; last week that wouldn’t have been the case.

IMG_5723Aside from the possibility of getting hot ironing, I actually kind of like the activity. 

*You can tell when you get finished.

*Easy to keep track of where you are in the project. I’ve ironed two shirts and have one more to do.

*The activity is a good place for getting used to not being “perfect,” but accepting “good enough.”

*The sense of accomplishment when you finish is super.

IMG_5726
You’ll notice almost all the shirts are in some shade of turquoise. That’s a topic for another day. 🙂

So I’m wondering, do you enjoy ironing? Do you iron? I know folks who send everything to the cleaners for washing and pressing. (The stuff that you don’t need to dry clean, like men’s dress shirts.)

Do you have a great ironing place? Can you leave the board up all the time? Or do you have to take it down between use? Have a built in one, like we used to have? Use a table top board like I do now?  Love to hear from you on this most important subject. LOL

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18 responses to “Do You Iron?”

  1. Yes, we iron. I have ironing to do right now. Bill irons his clothes and I iron my clothes and everything else. Bill actually irons better than I do. He also cleans better than I do, but we both clean.

    Have a great day, Marsha.

    Liked by 2 people

    • Hey, Susan. Y’all seem to have a great division of labor. Bob washes his clothes and I wash mine. This started when I went back to work full time, but didn’t switch back after I retired. As I mentioned, he doesn’t have but maybe two shirts that need ironing, so mostly we can just hang them up. When we were first married, I ironed all of them. I do wish I had a better ironing area, but I have a view! LOL Thanks for stopping by. 🙂

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      • Marsha, remember Rebecca, the perfect one, the Martha Stewart of the neighborhood from my books. Bill and I are going over to their house tomorrow evening for dinner. I will definitely need to iron for that….lol. 😉

        Liked by 1 person

    • Hey, Vicki. I like to do it all at once and get it over with. Even though, I’m using a small board, I still have to set it up. I just want to set it up once and then put it away. If you love turquoise be sure to check back next week. Wink, wink. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by.

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  3. Hi Marsha, I have always been intrigued by those irons from the old days that were actually made of iron (or some solid metal) and had to be heated on the stove or other source. That must have been HOT work. I imagine that there was considerably less ironing done during the summers in those days.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Hey, Ken. I think my grandmother had one of those irons she heated up on the stove. I don’t think it was as hot back then as it is now. Considerably less concrete and many more trees. But gosh, still ironing in the summer had to be un-fun. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  4. Hi Marsha, wow, that is unbelievably hot weather you’ve been having. I can well understand why you wouldn’t want to iron. I don’t mind ironing too much – I often watch television while I iron. It’s a good excuse to watch mindless TV and call it working 🙂
    I hope things continue to cool down for you. Summer seems to be over here in Yorkshire before it’s even begun!

    Liked by 1 person

    • Hey, Helena, we’re really enjoying our cooler temps. Any time we can get upper 80s in August, we think we’ve died and gone to heaven. Your area of the world is so beautiful in an awesome, lonely kind of way. I’m such a fan of trees, I’m surprised how much I like your pics of the moors. We will have summer all the way into October. Love for it to almost be over as you mention. No a fan of hot weather. I used to iron and watch TV, but our last house had a built-in board, which I dearly loved, but it was in the laundry room, so no TV. I guess I could set up the portable on the dining room table. I could see the TV from there. Will give it some thought. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂

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  5. Ironing was part of my childhood. I think I started at about age 10, and did all the family ironing until I was in my late teens. My father’s dress shirts and hankies, all the pillow slips and sheets, T-shirts, jeans, slacks, table cloths…
    I hated ironing back then, and now I avoid it–tossing the capris and T-shirts into the dryer with a damp towel will take out enough wrinkles to keep me happy!
    I do own an iron, but have only used it once in the year and a half since we moved.
    Love the turquoise! Also my favorite color, with accents in a soft pinkish orange. I even painted my bedroom furniture turquoise.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Hey, Kathryn, I remember ironing the hankies. Had forgotten those. My grandmother ironed the sheets and pillow covers. I never did that. I didn’t wear jeans as a young person, so never had to iron those. Table clothes, yes. A real pain to get them all on the board. LOL I will have to try your damp towel idea, Kathryn. A couple of my shirts would probably be okay that way. 🙂 Like it. Love you painted your bedroom furniture. I’ve got a very soft color on one wall in the bedroom. Had to cointend with my husband saying things were “too turquoise.” Bot to be a standing joke. You definitely will have to stop by next week You’ll love the topic. Thanks for stopping and sharing.

      Liked by 1 person

  6. I hate ironing. If a shirt requires ironing, I send it to the cleaners. Since I am frugal, I rarely buy anything requiring this process. Bring on the comfy tees!

    Liked by 1 person

    • Hey, Lisa. I went through a long period of not having to iron anything. I’ve recently moved into more shirts than t-shirts, which I used to love, but the shirts hide body issues better than the t-shirts. 🙂 So now I’m back to ironing. Thanks so much for stopping by. 🙂

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  7. I iron as little as possible. Hubby still takes all dress shirts to cleaners. I have a built in board. It’s really convenient. BUT. I have discovered a wrinkle releaser spray. It’s in groceries stores by fabric softeners. Those items that come out and just need a bit more-put on a hanger. Spray lightly. Shake and smooth. Let air dry a bit and most wrinkles just disappear. It is fab on tshirts and even dress shirts and slacks, etc.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Hey, Connie. Oh, the wonderful built in board! I’m a little green. 🙂 Wow! I’ll be on the watch for the Wrinkle Releaser next time I’m at the store. This sounds like miracle stuff like you see advertised on TV and they, say, “But wait, if you order now, you’ll get….” We laugh all the time at those, but I’m definitely checking out the releaser thing, Connie. Thanks so much for stopping by and for sharing! 🙂

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  9. I swear I wrote a comment on your blog early yesterday morning, but it isn’t there. I must have forgotten to hit post comment. Anyway my answer to the ironing question is “no.” I don’t remember the last time I ironed. My mother, who ironed 15 shirts a week for my brothers and dad, told me when I got married not to iron permanent press shirts because it will take the perm press out of the fabric. So I took that advice and bought only perm press which was kind of a new thing I think 40+ years ago. I do admire those who can iron a shirt. Enjoy your time with the ironing board, the iron, and the quiet view of the lake.
    JQ Rose

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