Have you noticed that household items seem to break down in pairs? Our fan died and needed replacement (yesterday’s post) and then our ironing board fell apart after years of use. Diane had a coupon at Bed, Bath, and Beyond so she checked out the available ironing boards. Diane decided on the Real Simple Ironing Board (the choice might be influenced by Diane’s subscription to Real Simple magazine). The model Diane purchased was Board Grey 54″ x 15″ RS‑1554. With her coupon, the Real Simple ironing board cost less than $30! A bargain! How much ironing do you do?
None. I haven’t ironed anything in probably 20 years. My shirts are wash and wear and I only wear jeans which look terrible ironed.
Same here Steve
Dan, you and Steve are on the same page with ironing. And, you have a lot of company!
Steve, without Diane I’d adopt your posture towards ironing.
My wife likes to iron some stuff but for the last 30 years I’ve been buying robust shirts, jeans and underwear on my visits to the USA (Wrangler and Levi’s mainly) and one the advantages of these clothes is that they take well to a tumble dryer just like our towels and bed linen …
So this has been a part of my household choirs washing and drying/putting the stuff on the clothes line. Because my wife at first had problems with the machines – her knowledge of German was insufficient, so this was clearly my job and I like to help her with the household work anyway.
Wolf, you’d earn high grades as a “helpful” husband over here! Many men leave the laundry to their wives/girl friends.
None.
Jackie hates to iron, always has, apparently. Partly it is because she is left handed and like most other things, irons are made for righties (she says).
She has told a story about going to the Catskills in her teens where her mother said she wasn’t going unless she ironed all her clothes the day before, so she stayed up doing it for hours. For our whole marriage, she has left clothes hanging in the hall closet for months until she has forced herself to iron them. I always tell her that my clothes don’t need ironing (occasionally a shirt will need ironing). When she was working she’d take clothes to the dry cleaners. Anything not to have to iron.
Actually, we inherited an ironing board from my grandmother! I couldn’t tell you for sure, but we might still have it! I know she has tried any number of irons over the years, trying to find the right combination of light weight but effective.
Other than the ironing, let me hasten to add, I do all the laundry and always have.
Jeff, you and Wolf are impressive! I did my own laundry when I lived in Wisconsin. After we were married, Diane decided she would be in charge of the laundry (she calls the room with the washer and dryer her “Office”). I was assigned other tasks like snowblowing and car maintenance.
I do as little ironing as possible!
Bill, I starting to detect a trend here.
I also have my grandmother’s iron board. I used to like ironing. Now I don’t. Phil takes his shirts to a laundry. Mine don’t usually need it.
Patti, Diane listens to audio books while she irons…for hours!
Jackie confirmed my story – she hates to iron! She said our current ironing board is not my grandmother’s but she can’t remember where we got it.
Jeff, my Mom used to have a wooden ironing board for years. But it finally broke and she replaced it with a metal one. I don’t think they make wooden ironing boards anymore.
NONE. I won’t buy anything that needs ironing.
When I was younger, we had gym uniforms that had to be ironed, and I had to do my own. And part of my chores was ironing pillow cases and my dad’s handkerchiefs.
Our house had a built in ironing board (we bought it in 1953 from the builder). My dad tore it out (was small) and put in shelves for knicknacks. (it also has a milk delivery door/cabinet – which is blocked on the inside by the washer/dryer combo)
Maggie–that brings back memories! In the early 1980s, I lived in Hollywood (the downscale Santa Monica & Vine area, not the “Hollywood” construct) and my apartment was frozen in the early 1930s. There was an O’Keefe & Merritt range in the kitchen, a shower knob in the bathtub labelled “Diverter”, and an ironing board built behind a small door. I did many hours of ironing there!
Deb, Diane and I have a friend who refuses to stay in a hotel that doesn’t provide an ironing board in the room. He brings his own iron!
Maggie, Diane irons my shirts and pants.
I got you beat–my ironing board was $10 at Walmart!
Ironing is a necessary evil–I don’t like doing it, but many types of fabric need to be ironed to look fresh. I like to iron my work clothes–even though I basically wear either khakis or leggings and tops. Our oldest daughter sometimes does my ironing for me. John does all his own ironing–apparently, I’m not “careful” enough for work shirts! I would say something about “learned incompetence” here, but I don’t want to acquire a new household responsibility!
Deb, that was always my father’s theory: the first time your wife asks you to do the dishes, “accidentally” drop a platter and she’ll never ask you to do it again!
This was not serious, however, as he always washed the platters as well as the pots and pans, and did the dishwasher. I know he did his own laundry after my mother died, but don’t know about before that.
CSB: When we first got together, I did John’s ironing for a few weeks until he determined he’d rather do his own. We were both working full time, do chores got done between work hours. Fast forward 13 years, and I’m able to be a stay-at-home mom. John “decides” that since I’m home, I could “try” ironing his shirts again. I decide that I don’t need him to make “busy work” for me, but I’ll be glad to take his shirts to the dry cleaners. Subject was never discussed again!
Jeff, Diane washes the dishes and I dry them. We have a dishwasher, but some plates and glasses Diane prefers to do by hand.
Deb, I’m with you on “learned incompetence”!
I used to iron, but no longer. As I approach my dotage I figure my shirts should be as wrinkled as I am.
Jerry, I’m im-presssed by your comment!
Ironing is very important here, as Barbara is a quilter, and fabric must be ironed before pieces are sewn together. She uses the iron a lot, it has spray, steam, self shut-off, several temperatures, retractible cord. The ironing board cost three times yours, George, maybe more, but has three different heights it can lock into. Good ironing board, good pad, good cover.
When the quilt group comes (every 4th Monday) the whole group is using the iron, as well as the large cutting board I made from reworked kitchen cabinets. So ironing, and the ironing board are important.
As for clothes, our dryer has enough settings (we both do laundry, and folding, and putting away) that things don’t seem to get wrinkled. We fold, hang and put them away promptly after finishing in the dryer. (And by the way we’re very happy with our recently purchased washer and dryer).
Ah, quilting – or as we call it in Europe often:
Patchwork …
My wife’s sister does this too and she makes wonderful bags out of old jeans eg and of course bigger stuff like a cover for our bed. She is part of a group in Hungary that does exhibitions even in Budapest and we brought her stuff from the US – motives from the Wild West, wolves (of course …) etc which we found in a store in Williams AZ.
Some of that stuff has to be ironed too so my wife collects it for maybe two weeks before she starts on it.
PS:
I remember handkerchiefs which had to be ironed – while I was active in IT and teaching I always had some of these and even some shirts that had to be ironed, but that was a long time ago …
Wolf, my son Patrick makes quilts, too. I remember him doing a lot of ironing in the process!
Rick, you and Barbara are the clear winners of the IRONING AWARD!