Old fashioned pressing IRONS
So, when did you say the good-ol' days were? I'm so glad to live in the days of electricity and even gladder to have so many permanent press clothes. What a job it would be to keep two IRONS going in order to press cloth - one at the IRONING board and one on the stove heating up. Not too hot, not too cold, but just right.
But that was not the whole task. In between IRONING days, the IRONS needed to be cleaned, sand-papered and polished.
Pressing IRONS (a.k.a. sad IRONS or flat IRONS) on wooden IRONING boards
Hot IRONS with metal handles had to be gripped in a pad or a thick wad of rag. Think of how amazed women must have been when detachable wooden handles were invented in 1870! I bet they felt thoroughly modern!
I am linking to Jenny Matlock at Alphabe-Thursday HERE
50 comments:
I remember those -- my Mom used them still when I was little. I am grateful for the steam irons of today. No more sprinkling clothes before ironing and putting in the freezer so it wouldn't mold if you didn't get the ironing all finished. lol I love to iron with modern irons.
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So much history held in those irons. Wouldn't it be fun if they could talk? Great pictures!
I remember my grandmother having these. They were soooo heavy! Re Pauline's comment. I still "sprinkle" clothes that need to be ironed. In fact, just last year I was looking for one of those sprinkler heads that fit in the top of a glass bottle to make the sprinkling task a little more even. Did I find one? No.
I have some like those ones. I like them very much... as decoration! Like you, I'm glad to live in a time with electricity!
My father tells story of his mother ironing. Seems like she had three or four irons going.
The good ol' days, in many ways, were not so good! Nice collection of iron(s).
That is an amazing collection. The phrase "good-ol' days" was coined by man because women did all the work around the house :)
i am sooooo happy i never had to use one of these, but i do like then and would like to own a few of these. beautiful
great shots! my mother had one of these old ones, but by the time i was born, she was happy to have a plug-in variety!
Againn- a lovely and interesting post! But metal handles.. how difficult it must have been in the old days! :O
I really like the first shot (not that there's anything wrong with the second)!
Imagine how amazed these hard-working women would be if they saw all of our time-saving appliances!
Love these photos...a great collection!
Those pressing irons are wonderful. I bet there's a few stories that accompany them.
This is a great 'I' post. I remember my grandmother ironing with an iron like one in your first photo.
Thank you for the view of rust. Love rusty items. The first shot is splendid, textures and colors.
I hate ironing (did I say I hate it) I would have hated it more using those tools! Nice catch!
i am dying to know what you bought!!!
I am definitely glad I'm not living in those "good old days". While there may have been some good things about the past, I still like my modern conveniences!
I am definitely glad I'm not living in those "good old days". While there may have been some good things about the past, I still like my modern conveniences!
I can't imagine that hey had time for much other than housework in those days!
I'm thinking those girls had great arms! Those irons couldn't have been light at all! Those are so cool looking, but I'm glad for my lightweight electric one!
Wow..those are just awesome to see, and look heavy. I don't like ironing, and I am glad I didn't have to iron anymore.
I love those old irons! I am actually severely allergic to ironing. Even just looking at the photos gives me a little rash!
xxoo,
RMW
Dreadful!!! Ironing is not my favorite thing to do but I'm certainly glad that I have electricity and gadgets on my iron to make the task less stessful! God bless the women who used these irons!
Such a great shot! I have a time getting around to ironing now and it boggles the mind to think of ironing with these great old relics!
I love the look of those old irons and think they make wonderful accent pieces. But I am SO thankful that I don't have to use them to iron, since ironing is not one of my favorite tasks.
And to think I hate ironing in this day & age! :)
My mom had a couple of those old irons...and I think she used them...at one time.
There are somethings I would enjoy about the old days, but so much I would not want to give up for anything. The number one thing being the medical advances.
I lifted a couple of those once and they are heavy! Imagine the strength the women had their arms after ironing with them.
Judith
I have to agree that I'm grateful for the many modern conveniences we have today. I love the character of the irons in your pictures.
Very cool - I wouldn't want to iron my clothes with anything like that!
I have seen these before, I remember my mother using them long ago too. They are darned heavy things, I'll take the modern iron or better still permenant press.
You mean they weren't always door stops? :) That's what I use one for and I can't imagine ever ironing with it! I love our modern conveniences.
Hahaha! I love Betty's comment!! The photos of the irons are soooo cool, er, I mean HOT!
What a great collection.
I have my husband's mother's iron, and his grandmother's too. I also have the super-duper modern gas powered iron - scary! When I look at them and think of the labour involved in ironing with them I am in awe.
I hate ironing. I don' t know why...it just seems tedious. Maybe because as a kid I got to iron the linens (who does THAT anymore?!). BUT, I love the irons in your photos. What a cool collection!
Wow, that is quite the collection. I have a few that I use as decor. I am always grateful that I can just plug mine in.
That is a beautul collection of old irons. I remember those.
These old irons are just so cool to see. And I love the photo quality, too.
=)
Nice shots of these old irons. I agree about the good old days not being so good...
Not that I remember them, but I have one at my house as a decoration - yes, it's heavy:)
What wonderful compositions, with lovely tones and textures....so nostalgic.
Love the irons, love the shots. My grandmother too used one or two of those, I don't even own an iron. I have a steamer and that does it!
Wonderful, wonderful photos.
I really like these iron pieces!
And the splash in the previous post is really impressive!
God bless you!
Cezar
Great shots!
My grandmother was born in 1913 and I used to wonder about her slamming ironing technique. She put her full weight into each thrust. Looking at these shots, the light finally dawns.
Ironing is not an activity I enjoy! That being said, when I was a young child my mother bought me my fist antique. It was an iron!
Your photos are awesome!
Where on earth did you find all these irons to take these fabulous pictures?
Wow. What an amazing collection!
I loved all of these. I used to collect a few but nothing as neat as those. And those ironing boards were really neat, too!
Thanks for a fabulous link for the letter "I".
A+
A lovely collection. I've never seen one with ripple sheets turned upwards (the first on the right in the first photo).
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