Stop Ironing, Start Living (and Steaming)!

I don’t mind most housework (dishes, vacuuming, etc.), but I completely hate ironing. It’s such a pain. Every time you do it, you have to get out the iron and the ironing board, which is a hassle. And then you have to wait for the iron to heat up. (Why does it take sooooo long?) Once you do actually get to ironing, the clothes never end up looking that smooth. There are always little the creases and puckers, which are caused by the iron itself. And you have to nudge the iron into all those corners and around buttons. And you can scorch your clothes or set your house on fire. (OK, that’s a bit extreme, but I have burned myself before.) Gah! Ironing is the worst.

Of course, when you have a “fancy” job that requires you to leave the house and look presentable, it usually involves some ironing. In an ideal world, we’d all set aside a few hours every weekend to iron our clothes for the week while we caught up on our favorite television programs. But yeah right. If you’re anything like me, you wake up thinking, “Shit, what can I wear that’s clean?” And then you have to iron your one clean pair of pants right that second or you’ll be late. Several years ago, after ironing my dresses and pants dutifully each morning, I burned out. I just kind of gave up on ironing, and I started looking increasingly wrinkled and sloppy. Great life choice! But then one day I was saved: I was staying at a friend’s house, and we were going to a wedding, and she offered to steam my dress. It was then that I discovered the magical little machine called the steamer and everything changed. It’s so easy! You just run the steam wand over the whole thing and voila! Wrinkles released. It’s like somehow steam plus gravity puts all of the little fibers into perfect alignment.

I came home and purchased a steamer for myself, and it has changed my life. That is a little sad, but I am not kidding! I use my steamer pretty much every day, and it has turned me into a person who looks presentable (most of the time). There’s a reason why clothing stores everywhere rely on steamers to keep their clothes looking perfect. Steamers could not be easier to use. You just fill up the little tank with water, plug it in, turn it on, and wait about a minute for the steam to come out of the wand. Then you run the wand across the fabric, and the wrinkles disappear pretty much instantly. Plus, it’s fun and weirdly satisfying to steam. It’s great for pants, shirts, dresses, even curtains. (I know… How often do you steam the curtains? But now you can start!) You can steam pretty much any kind of fabrics — I even use it on silk and sweaters. (I’m not sure it’s technically recommended, but I’ve never had any problems). It’s saved me a ton on dry cleaning. Previously I would have sent items that weren’t really dirty but were wrinkled/run-down to the dry cleaner. Now I just steam them, and they look good as new again.

The only downside is that steamers are a bit pricey. A good, professional steamer will cost you in excess of $100, but it is well worth it. I swear to you. Plus, think about it in terms of the ironing time/stress it will save you and also the money/time you won’t spend dry cleaning. And maybe you’ll start looking so much sharper that your boss will notice and give you a raise? A steamer is an investment in your future.

Whatever you do, don’t fall for those cheaper dinky steamers you can get at places like Bed, Bath, and Beyond. They’re usually called hand steamers or compact steamers, and they don’t work very well. What you want is one that has a steam tank as a base and then a pole that extends up that you can hang the clothes on. And something that can produce good, consistent steam. I have the Jiffy J-2000, and I love it! It’s very well built, and rolls around on cute little wheels. It looks 1000 times better than that clunky ironing board, and I just push it into my closet when I want it out of sight and then wheel it right back out again in the morning. I’ve had it for 3 years and have never had a single problem with it — and I feel like it could last for another 100 years.

So what are you waiting for? Get your steam on! Oh, in closing I will share one important lesson I have learned: You cannot steam garments while you are wearing them. It seems like you should be able to, but actually it really hurts. So don’t be tempted.

As always, nobody is paying me to endorse any of these products.