View Full Version : So... how do you iron a shirt?
Yes, I know- I know, "you don't iron", "what's an iron", "who irons", "I haven't ironed since the turn-of-the-century". This thread is dedicated to those who actually do iron.
A conversation in another thread related to ironing, as to how (steps A-Z) does one actually iron a shirt when they're ironing. i.e. Collar (first)? Button placket (first)? Sleeves (first)? And then what next? The button placket? The sleeves?
At any rate, here's my method. http://therealityshow.net/talk/images/smilies/smiley_ironing.gif
1. Start with placket front, button-hole side, progress to opposite button-side, pressing shirt-body entirely as I work.
2. Press box-pleats, side-pleats, darts.
3. Press sleeves/cuffs.
4. Press yolk. (This step I use the tapered end of my ironing board to complete).
5. Press collar, promptly hang.
Mrs-M, actually that was pretty much the way I would do it, when I did iron. I haven't ironed in several years. I don't even OWN an iron any longer. And I certainly don't own anything that needs to be ironed! ;-)
I was just in Manhattan for two weeks. I'd forgotten about dry cleaners. I'd forgotten about dry cleaners 20 feet down the street from the door to your apartment building.
OMG, luxury.
Tradd. Your post comes as a bit of a relief to me. Today, Catherine, posted her way (the proper way), and believe it or not, I've been feeling bad ever since... Silly, I know, but I'm only being honest.
Bae. My husband was telling me that many years ago there was a tailor situated just across the street from where he works, and he could drop his things off (old things/new purchase(s), and the tailor would alter, press, and hang, sometimes at a moments notice, and for cheap. DH mentions that it was his saving grace at times.
To add, I'm disappointed in myself for thinking I was the perfect little Miss Susie Homemaker, always doing everything correctly. I've been stirring over it (all day), the thought of operating a Home-Economics course (like almost happened before our two baby boys came along), only to have a new student show-up and challenge me on the issue. How embarrassing that would be! Even more embarrassing (and disappointing), my mom irons a shirt like Catherine, does!
My method from prep-school:
- hang clothing from line in bathroom next to shower, take hot shower. Let roommate take hot shower. Problem solved.
LOL! I have heard that the steam method works wonders.
I laughed the first time my husband carefully rolled a few of his things (pants/shirts) in preparation for a business trip he was making. He gathered all sorts of ideas from the internet as to "how to roll correctly", etc, and I told him, "sweetie, roll or not, your things will need pressed when you get to your destination". "No, they'll be fine", he replied, "the internet says"...
"OK" I thought. Well, the very next day, DH telephones me up (from Calgary Alberta), and he's all in a flap over his clothing being all wrinkled. I mean some upset! So I tell him, "see if the hotel can bail you out", and sure enough, they do. Moral of the story, no amount of fancy rolling one can do will prevent wrinkles from occurring while travelling. And, if one must roll, do not cram rolled articles (tightly) into weekend travel bag!
So, here's my case "against" collar-first ironing. I like to pull the shirt (by the collar/collar region) when pressing the button placket and body, to stretch out the fabric and keep it taut while applying and gliding the iron over the surface, so collar-first, would mean collar-last, because after fussing with the collar (pulling/tugging at it and all), it would need to be redone again.
When I was raising my sons, I had to iron 5 shirts every day...4 boys plus my husband. One cold day I sent one of the boys to school wearing a turtleneck shirt, but he was promptly told to go home and change into a "proper" shirt because the principal said that a t-shirt wasn't allowed in his school.
Nowadays I only have cotton/poly clothes, bedding, etc. I haven't ironed for years.
goldensmom
5-13-12, 7:09am
I started ironing handkerchiefs and aprons when I was 8 and graduated to shirts at 10. Collar first, yoke if there is one, right side, back, left side, left sleeve, right sleeve. I pull placket straight by the top button, never thought of pulling from the collar. Check cuffs when done because my husband's 37" sleeves touch the floor during the ironing process. I never considered if I was doing it right or wrong, it's just the way my mother taught me to do it and it worked. I iron almost everything we wear, even jeans if I see a wrinkle.
rosarugosa
5-13-12, 7:47am
Collar, then sleeves, then cuffs, then left front, then back/yoke, then right front. Fortunately, DH doesn't wear dress shirts to work anymore, and I try to avoid buying shirts that need ironing, so although I do have some ironing every week, it is a whole lot less!
BTW: I think that as long as the shirt ends up without wrinkles, then it was done correctly!
My mother drilled into my head the "right" way to iron shirts. I was responsible for all the ironing for our family, and grew to hate it with a passion. Most of my wardrobe are knits that require no or little ironing. For those few times I do iron a shirt its this:
- iron collar
- iron cuffs, then sleeves
- iron body of the shirt
Even though in my head I rebel at following rules, especially from my mother, I do have to admit this is a pretty efficient way. I don't have as much "re-do" this way.
I can remember finding wet, rolled up clothes in the refrigerator, waiting for mom to iron them. And that big glass bottle of water with the spinkler on top.
Thank heavens steam irons were invented.
Miss Cellane
5-13-12, 8:15am
I agree with rosarugosa--the proper way to iron a shirt is the one that leaves it without wrinkles. There is no one right way to iron a shirt.
For years, my mom dealt with my dad's Army uniforms, which had to be starched and ironed and creased and perfect. I think she was very happy when we could afford to send those out to be cleaned and pressed. It was a lot of work.
The way my mom taught me to iron was collar, yoke and cuffs first. The key thing about collars is that you iron from the edges into the center. That prevents little wrinkles from forming at the edge of the collar. Then sleeves, back, right side, left side, taking care to make sure the placket is smooth on each side.
The way I iron today--collar and yoke, then sleeves. Then left side of shirt, then the back, then the right side. This allows me to just slide the body of the shirt over the ironing board from one side to the back to the other side, without having to lift it off the board and reposition it. (Just how lazy can I get?) And you'll notice that there's no mention of cuffs in there. Either I iron the cuff as one with the sleeve or (pause for gasp of horror) I don't iron the cuffs at all. Usually, my shirt sleeves are rolled up or under a jacket, sometimes both, and you just don't see the cuff. Therefore no need to iron it. As I said, I'm lazy.
I know there are a lot of people who never iron. Despite my best efforts at getting clothes out of the dryer immediately at the end of a cycle, my clothes get wrinkled. Or they get fold lines from being folded in a dresser drawer. And my closet is very small (I have 16 inches of usable hanging space, 16 inches of semi-usable hanging space and 16 inches of hanging space that can't be used to hang things at all), so the clothes are jammed in there and they get wrinkled more in the closet. There are all these people who never iron and their clothes aren't wrinkled and I can't figure out how they do it.
Despite my best efforts at getting clothes out of the dryer immediately at the end of a cycle, my clothes get wrinkled. Or they get fold lines from being folded in a dresser drawer. And my closet is very small (I have 16 inches of usable hanging space, 16 inches of semi-usable h
I've shared this tip before.. I use the dryer only to warm the clothes. I put them in for about 5 minutes, and then hang them. They come out nearly completely free of wrinkles and with nice body without being stiff. I'll take my husband's polo shirts out of the dryer warm and damp and hang them on hangers and they go right from the rack in the basement to the closet perfectly pressed.
morning girl
5-13-12, 8:56am
I went to Catholic high school and wore the same 5 long sleeved blouses for 4 years. 5 blouses = clean blouse for each day. I never could manage to iron on weekends so I ironed a blouse each morning in a half awake state. Since I wore a jumper I only ironed the collar, the placket area about halfway down and the sleeves. That said I do iron the collar first on a shirt. That's the way I was taught and never thought about anyone doing it differently.
For the first 25 years of our marriage, DH had a freshly ironed dress shirt to wear to work. I ironed each one in precisely the same order as you iron shirts. Our 25th wedding anniversary from me to me was to take said shirts to the laundry and for the last 19 years that is precisely what I have done.:)
Sad Eyed Lady
5-13-12, 9:44am
Mrs-M, actually that was pretty much the way I would do it, when I did iron. I haven't ironed in several years. I don't even OWN an iron any longer. And I certainly don't own anything that needs to be ironed! ;-)
This is pretty much my take on it too. Except, I do own an iron and I may, on occasion, press something that needs it.
catherine.......I do that alot with clothes.......take them out of the dryer fairly wet and hang them up. No wrinkles.
Am I EVER rebelling this morning over this thread! I know my mom taught me how to iron, so I'm positive she covered off where (anatomy wise) one should start in relation to "first" and "last" when pressing a shirt, but for some unknown reason I missed that part (entirely)!
Well... I'll be revisiting this thread later today, because, I just put in a dark wash-load, and when it's done, it's going into the tumble dryer (not waiting for line-dried clothes today), and when everything is dry, I'm going to set-up my ironing board, ready my iron, and try my hand at "collar first" shirt ironing!
Then, after both I, and the iron cool down, I'll share the verdict with everyone.
P.S. Yes, I, too, am a firm believer in the idea of "whatever works", just so long as it gets the job done, with proper-ness. Not stringent proper-ness, in the way of political correctness, but proper-ness, in relation to "job well done".
Originally posted by Miss Cellane.
The key thing about collars is that you iron from the edges into the center. That prevents little wrinkles from forming at the edge of the collar.I just learned something new! Thanks MC!
Originally posted by Miss Cellane.
The way I iron today--collar and yoke, then sleeves. Then left side of shirt, then the back, then the right side. This allows me to just slide the body of the shirt over the ironing board from one side to the back to the other side, without having to lift it off the board and reposition it. (Just how lazy can I get?)Not lazy at all, just smart and efficient.
In the 7th grade we had to take 9 weeks Art, 9 weeks Typing, 9 weeks shop and 9 weeks home-ec. I remember the day on ironing shirts - "Always start with the small sections and finish with the large sections".
I do the collar, yoke, sleeves, front shoulder areas then the front panels and finish with the back...hold it up and check of any missed areas or areas that got wrinkled in the process.
I cannot not iron a "no-iron" shirt. Nothing looks as nice and "finished" as a freshly pressed shirt. IMHO
Gregg44. I honestly believe the school system failed (really failed), when they decided to replace Home-Economics, with an alternate shoe-in. Home-Economics (Home-Ec, in my day) was a super excellent course to take. Mind you, we had an exceptional teacher who really gave it her all to make the course what it was, but still, I remember learning a lot from it, and compared to a number of other students who enrolled in it, I was fairly ahead of the game as far as knowing a lot of domestic stuff/things already, so the learning curve for those who hadn't been exposed to everyday standard domestic things was tremendous. So right you are re: pressed shirts, regardless of whether fabric calls for ironing or not.
I was of the era where girls HAD to take home-ec. By 7th/8th grade, I had already learned to cook, sew, plan a meal, shop etc at home so I really wanted to take Shop instead, but girls were not allowed to. Instead we got to do things like make pizza for the boys (not for us), and make the same lame hippie/peasant shirt that all the rest of 7th grade was also making. <rolling eyes> Oh what fun. To give you an example of how odd our Home Ec teacher was (not-so-ironically her name was Mrs. Quirk), if you were caught chewing gum in class, she would examine it and if it was an interesting color, she saved it in this box that she would pass around. I can still hear her say "look at all the pretty colors". Just ewwwwww.
Now that is quirky, Herbgeek. Eeks... I had a few really strange teachers in my day as well. Foods & Nutrition, was another rewarding course (super great teacher), although not as enjoyable as HE. Our F&N class ALWAYS started out with a fresh pot of tea for every table! Only downfall, instant/powered milk...
The key thing about collars is that you iron from the edges into the center. That prevents little wrinkles from forming at the edge of the collar.
Yes, I do them that way, too - or did, when I ironed! ;-)
I'm one of those people who doesn't iron and doesn't have wrinkled clothes! I don't have button front woven shirts - at all. I prefer soft, fluid clothes to crisp ones. So I have cotton sweater twin sets, instead (my uniform). They're wash on gentle, hang to dry, and to get rid of the stiffness, I tumble them in the dryer on the air setting for 5-10 minutes.
Well, verdict in... I do like starting with the collar (first), then the yoke, but that's where everything falls apart. I just don't get that warm fuzzy feeling inside over pressing sleeves when the body of the shirt is wrinkled, so looks like I'm back to my semi-old ways regarding.
With me it's about trying and succeeding, but whatever I do/have done in life, I've had to be happy at it, and maybe, after so many years of doing things my own stubborn way, ironing specifically, it's sort of/kind of looking like there's no changing. Going to keep playing around with this for the next little while and see where it goes. Will post another update in weeks to come.
You guys are the best!
Love the air-setting on my dryer, Tradd!
Originally posted by Catherine.
I use the dryer only to warm the clothes. I put them in for about 5 minutes, and then hang them. They come out nearly completely free of wrinkles and with nice body without being stiff.I remember when you shared your hint/tip with us. I use your method often! Still haven't figured out the scientific answer as to why it works, but it does.
Originally posted by Goldensmom.
I pull placket straight by the top buttonMe too, so I found out as of this afternoon. It's funny how we do so many familiar things so automatic-like, to the point of where, if asked, we can't recollect how exactly we do it, just that we do. A definite sign we've been doing it for a really, r-e-a-l-l-y long time...
Miss Cellane. Re: point-to-middle collar pressing, do you switch hands to iron each side of the collar?
Mrs M - had I seen this post two weeks ago, I would not have opened it, as I hadn't ironed in a year or more... however, with the passing of my dad, I have had reason to iron numerous dress clothes and I can honestly state that it is a skill much like riding a bike - you never forget.
I do the collar first, and SWITCH hands. (see, I pay attention to these posts :)). Also, from edge to center.
I forgot the yoke the first time, and was a little frustrated, so now the yoke is second.
Next is cuffs.
Then sleeves, and then both front sides, finishing with the back.
My grandson saw me ironing my son's and husband's shirts, and he took off his polo for me to iron. My daughter indicated he had probably never had anything ironed - today's clothing styles are sort of wash and go...
I have a friend who irons everything before wear... even casual kids' clothing, and sometimes even underwear.
iris lily
5-14-12, 10:42am
I have a batch of linen napkins that need ironing. My method is to collect a lot of napkins, use them over some months, wash all of them and stuff them into a drawer. Then 1 or 2X annually, pull out the iron and have an ironing marathon.
Recently I pulled out the iron to make fake napkins from cut cloth. I needed napkins of a particular color to complete a table arrangement at a flower show. I didn't want to take time to hem them, so I just ironed the edges and turned the edges inward. No one knew they weren't hemmed. Got 1st place in the class.
Miss Cellane
5-14-12, 12:37pm
Miss Cellane. Re: point-to-middle collar pressing, do you switch hands to iron each side of the collar?
Sometimes. Sometimes I reverse the iron and still use my dominant hand. In other words, I turn the iron around so the pointy end is facing opposite the way it usually is, and I use my dominant hand to move it around the collar.
You see, I'm left-handed. Back when I was learning to iron, most irons were right-handed, with the cord coming out of the right side of the iron. This is great for righties, as the cord can be kept on the far side of the ironing board. But when you are left-handed, it means that the cord is always getting in the way and there's a fair chance you are going to iron over the cord at some point. So my mom made me learn how to iron right-handed. These days, I look for irons with the cord coming out of the center back of the iron. An ambidextrous iron, if you will.
One fortunate side effect of my chosen vocation is that my t-shirts are pre-ironed right out of the dryer.
LOL, Imerullo! Glad to know you do the hand-switch for the collar. (I've always found comfort in numbers). So cute and sweet Re: your grandson. My mom mentioned that some mothers, back in the 50's/60's, used to iron their children's diapers. (Makes me tired just thinking about it)! Besides... ironing fabric, closes and tightens the nap, so my guess is, ironing diapers made them less absorbent. No wonder so many next-generation mothers welcomed, Pampers!
Originally posted by Iris Lily.
I have a batch of linen napkins that need ironing. My method is to collect a lot of napkins, use them over some months, wash all of them and stuff them into a drawer. Then 1 or 2X annually, pull out the iron and have an ironing marathon.This would keep me up at night and give me nightmares! LMAO! P.S. Congratulations on getting First Place!
Miss Cellane. Thanks for the insight. After you mentioned "you slide the body of the shirt over the ironing board from one side to the back to the other side, without having to lift it off the board and reposition it", I started thinking... thinking how I could be more efficient than I already am while standing at the ironing-table. I'm so bad! Even though I don't fancy the likes of stringent proper-ness, there's still a part of me that appreciates certain aspects of it. Guess I do have a little Martha, in me, after all! ROTFLMAO!!!
Gregg. That's the best way! If I added-up all of the "straight out of the dryer/off the clothesline" things I never touch with an iron, versus the things I do, the percentage ratio would be something-like, 95/5%.
Well, behind the scenes, I've been diligently working away at honing my ironing skills, specifically my shirt-ironing skills, and as it stands, here is (what looks to be) my final (comfortable) method/process for ironing collared-shirts.
1. Start with collar.
2. Press placket front (button-hole side), progress to opposite button-side, pressing shirt-body entirely as I work.
3. Press box-pleats, side-pleats, darts.
4. Press yolk.
5. Press sleeves/cuffs, promptly hang.
This method strikes a happy-balance for me, even though I know it doesn't conform to old-school proper-ness.
Mrs-M--You are just wonderful... you don't have to worry about plackets or yolks (actually, I think you and I have been spelling it wrong--I think the correct spelling is "yoke" ((n) fabric comprising a fitted part at the top of a garment)
When you said once in a post long ago that you wipe down your kitchen floors every night, I knew I was outclassed in that department... I'm sure your ironing fits the bill in every way. You are proper enough!
Awww... you're always so kind, Catherine. You have such a big heart. Thank you.
I feel so embarrassed... misspelling, yoke. I really am hoping you really truly were misspelling "yoke" with me! ROTFLMAO! You know the real kicker to this, Catherine? When I was first starting this thread topic, I searched for a site that showed the anatomy of a collared shirt, because I was going to attach it to my thread-start, and I made a mental note of how to spell "yoke" after coming across just such a site (and picture), yet somehow I still managed to misspell it! LMAO! Me and reading and remembering (as of late), leaves a whole lot to be desired. :laff:
P.S. I'm not going to go back and review this thread to see if you were indeed misspelling "yoke", that way I can continue feeling good about it! :D
Well, here's the proof:
In your thread about "Homemakers to the Rescue":
I was taught that you iron a shirt in this order:
1) collar
2) cuffs
3) sleeves
4) front
5) back yolk (by folding it at the place where the yolk meets the back)
6) back
Any one else have a different way? I remember when I was working in summer stock in Connecticut, the costume designer had to run to New Haven to pick up a costume and left me with the job of ironing a shirt. Seems easy right? Well, I hadn't finished by the time she went ALL the way to New Haven and back--and all I can remember was her look of complete amazement and disdain...
So she taught me how to iron, and then my husband gave me the Master's training: as a former Marine, he expected his shirts to stand up by themselves. So ironing and starching his shirts was a big part of my morning ritual. Of course now I'd be inclined to tell him to go iron them himself, or get them done at the laundry.
LOL, Catherine! This whole "yolk- yoke" thing, made my night! :laff:
One thing is about pressing a "yolk" with an iron, sure sets one apart from preparing eggs (breakfast) the ordinary way! ROTFLMAO! Did I hear you say "sunny-side up"! :)
Float On. What's your method?
Method?
I don't think I own anything that needs ironed.
I do have an iron. I do use it for when I sew.
I've got one son who has started wearing dress shirts and ties (rebel) but it's up to him to iron by whatever method he can figure out.
LOL, Float On! I've always been a staunch supporter of starting them off young!
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