Ironing clothes can be quite a problematic task at first, but it doesn’t have to be so complicated.
Properly ironing pants, dress, shirts and jackets can be simple enough if you know which needs special attention and which doesn’t.
Learning these things can help ironing be done in a quickly and efficiently.
Here are some adulting tips and skills on how to properly iron some of the basic items in your wardrobe.
Note, using steam can help with the task. If your iron doesn’t have that setting, a bottle of water you can lightly spray on the fabric can help remove difficult wrinkles.
Be careful with temperature settings for each material as you don’t want to ruin your garments.
Shirts
When ironing shirts, start with the sleeves since leaving it for last can cause wrinkles in parts of the shirt you’ve already ironed.
When ironing the whole sleeve, to make the task easier, first open the cuffs and lay them flat.
Next move to the collar of the shirt, open and lay them flat when ironing them. Iron the rest of the shirt then hang it for a few minutes to cool down.
This way, the flatness of the shirt will set and perfect ironed look can be attained.
Pants
When ironing pants, gentle pressure and steam are actually what gets the job done. Start by turning it inside out and ironing the pockets. Then it right side out for ironing the waist by draping the top of the pants over the narrow end of the ironing board. When it comes to pants, set the leg crease before ironing the whole pants.
If the pants have lost their main crease, simply line up the seams so the legs match. The crease should go all the way up the pant leg, to about six inches below the waist. After setting the crease, put the pants flat with the legs over one another. Fold the top leg then press the inside of the bottom leg. Flip the pants and repeat the step to the other side.
Jackets/Suit Coat
First, read the label inside the jacket for the material’s description. Use a steam iron (if possible) for jackets/suit coats based on the description on the label.
Set the steam iron and allow it to warm up. Next, lay the jacket’s interior flat against the board. Smooth out any wrinkles or folds on the jacket using your hands. Then lay a damp linen cloth over a part of the back of the jacket.
Press the steam iron over the damp cloth and lift it back up. Next, reposition the cloth to other parts of the back of the jacket, press the steam iron over it again. Continue the step until the whole back is done. Make sure that the iron doesn’t slide across the cloth. Do the same step to the sleeves and the front of the suit.
Dress
When ironing dresses with collars, start by following how you iron a shirt. For a skirt, begin at the bottom working towards the waist. If it has ruffles, start at the hemline towards the center. For pleats, begin at the bottom inside of the pleat then move to the outside. Dresses are often made of delicate fabrics so be sure to read the label before ironing.
Sources:
http://lifehacker.com/5811853/how-to-properly-iron-shirts-pants-and-skirts
http://www.bhg.com/homekeeping/laundry-linens/clothes/how-to-iron/