On the way to work this morning I noticed someone down the road had thrown out their ironing board. That makes sense, I thought. I mean, who needs an ironing board?
Ah yes, but what about the environment, you say? What about all of the oil involved in producing the synthetic fibre? To which I say, what about the environmental impact of cotton?
Yes, I know I could wear hemp shirts or something else like that, but I’m sure they’d only need ironing too.
This puts me in stark contrast to my mum who used to iron everything: from handkerchiefs to sheets. My earliest childhood memory, in fact, is of weekly baths in the copper as my mum boiled the sheets to within an inch of their lives ahead of ironing them to within an inch of their lives.
I mean, occasionally, just occasionally, I don’t mind using a bit of Fabulon, but mostly I find it boring and pointless.
And the reality is, if you wash your clothes and then hang them up to dry on coat-hangers they end up looking pretty good anyway, especially if they’re half-synthetic. For all others, take a trip to the laundromat as they do a very fine job for next to nothing.
..because life is too short to iron.
And three cheers for the people down the road who have thrown out their ironing board.
9 responses to “Ironing Board”
I’m an ironer and proud of it! :)
I’m with Tom. While I don’t LOVE ironing, I do like to put on something that’s freshly ironed. Just say ‘no’ to synthetics!
Amen to that brother!!!
I loathe ironing with a passion. I haven’t picked up an iron in months… if it can’t be made wrinkle-free without more than 5 minutes in the tumble drier, it’s not worth it.
I love microfibre. Smooth, sleek, but unfortunately hard to come by. I just got given 4 poly-mix iron-free shirts from my work… 5 minutes in the drier, and they’re as good as new :-)
I’m not in the habit of wearing business shirts, but it’s good to know you can have them without the ironing. I will grab one and experiment. Because life really is too short.
Good on you Gus! Obviously Andrew and Tom have too much time on their hands. And Mark, go for it – let the experiment begin! Notice the girls have been suspiciously quiet on this one?
Yeah, loads of time, James! No, I just have lots of shirts so I can go for 3 weeks without ironing, but then I have a mountain to get through. I hate the thought of ironing but actually once I get going it’s very satisfying.
And anyone who tells me they’d rather some man made sticky sweaty shirt over a freshly ironed one of these is mad! :)
I agree with you totally, Tom. Cotton shirts are much nicer, and so that’s why I get Mr Crown Street Laundromat to deal with them for me. A little expense that goes a long way. And good luck for all the job stuff.
Thanks James! Still in the planning stage but all good so far with the job stuff!
I think I need to find another ironer… I sometimes use the one behind my office, but end up redoing them as it’s not great – they get 90% of the way there, but they aren’t perfect, but for $2 a shirt it’s better than me doing it!
Well seeing as the girls have been silent – I think the best “iron” in the world is masquerading under the name “dryer” in my laundry. (Is that how you spell it, where’s Chook when you need some english lessons?). Whack anything in there for long enough and out it comes, all wrinkle-free and ready to wear. I actually survived for a number of months after my sister visited and “stored” the iron somewhere I still haven’t found it. I eventually bought a new one and have been keeping an eagle eye on it in case the cats decide to “store” it somewheere.