Linen - do you just accept the creases?

[doyoueverstopandthink]

I’ve come to own quite a few pieces of linen clothing which are gorgeous and floaty, but also crease like a bugger.

Do I just have to accept they’re going to be creased, or do I need to start planning to take a little travel iron everywhere I go on holiday?!

YABU - iron it you lazy cow

YANBU - creases for the win

I like linen but always iron it before wearing. At that point I tend to relax because I am not looking at myself anymore!

I iron all my summer dresses just before a holiday, then pack them on hangers, wrapped up in polythene laundry bags. It works quite well and I just hang them straight up on arrival.

I roll into packing cubes so I am debating a travel iron!

I am very much in the natural fibres gang, but I agree with PP - linen can get in the bin. It's horrid. No drape, no give, so it never fits quite right, and the rough texture leaves my actual skin covered in red crease marks, never mind the ones in the clothes.

Couldn’t agree more! And it’s not particularly ‘floaty” in my opinion either. My sister wore a linen dress the other day and it really did look like she’d slept in it.

I tried everything with linen..ironing damp, ironing wet , drip dry etc. IF anything I seemed to iron the creases in! Plus in linen trousers you tend to be able to see peoples knickers through them.

No more linen for me!

You cannot stop linen creasing. It's impossible. The creases aren't wrong or something to get rid of, they are just part of the aesthetic (which obviously it's fine not to like).

I've just bought some tops from White Stuff, 100% linen but a knitted, printed fabric.
Not quite solved the creasing problem, but so much better than the woven, plain-coloured fabric.

accept the creases.
fold and roll when almost dry to smoothe out the fabric a little.
ironing is futile ino as creases from wearing look harsh

Are you sure it’s 100% linen if it’s that rough? I have pure linen trousers from M&S on now and they’re really soft?

This is why I think linen clothing looks awful on everyone.

I don't care how comfortable it is, I don't want to walk around looking like a used tissue!

Am wearing a linen shirt today - I think/hope the creases give me an insouciant, flaneur like look...

100% linen yes. But I've never loved anything enough to get to the point of having washed it a few times, so I guess it probably would soften. I just don't like it enough to persevere.
I love linen blended with silk though, although it's really hard to find nowadays, and probably completely unaffordable. I've got some nice old LK Bennet skirts in that mix but I feel like I'll be waiting a while for the tailored knee length shape to come back into vogue 😂

Oh see I washed mine after trying it on because I knew that would work!

I found out a trick for linen recently and it 100% works - get one of those water misters, like the Evian ones and just spray the material and run your hands down the clothes, it gets most of the creases out! If you carry a little one with you in your handbag, you can decrease on the go!

Thank god I'm not alone. I really don't get the love for linen for all those reasons, plus it's not particularly cool. I find cotton dresses much cooler and more comfortable to wear.

I iron my linen stuff straight from the washing machine.

Bloody love Linen! Have linen mix wide leg trousers from Next which are fab, crease slightly but not too badly, and so soft!

You can buy spray starch in a can, it helps the iron slide over the fibres more easily. Can’t remember the name but it has a red top and I buy it from Sainsbury’s.

I know people will sigh when I say it, but I do think that with linen in particular, you ‘get what you pay for’…

I once had a pair of more-expensive linen work trousers that I bought with a JL gift voucher and they were absolutely amazing in all summer temperatures, glided over my legs with a wafty breeze and looked great for years until I finally wore through the underside! They were £80 back then so a similar pair would probably be £120 or so now.

Whereas I think cotton or viscose can be good or not so good at various price points.

I love linen and generally only wear clothes made from natural fibres. But I would never ever wear linen clothing (or anything else) that hasn't been ironed! I've always taken a travel iron on holiday, but prefer to use a hotel/apartment ironing board and iron if available.

There's a big difference between linen that has been ironed and that hasn't. Ironed-but-a-bit-creased linen is very chic.

I actually feel the same! Give me a man man material that stays looking nice all day please!
I had a couple of linen things but I don’t iron so I wore them both once and stuck them on vinted - what’s the point, they just look rubbish as soon as you put them on. Never understood it myself.

I have never in my life encountered scratchy linen, unless it was cheap stuff. As for the rest of your post, it's quite simple: if you like things to look perfect then don't wear linen, otherwise just let the rest of us float around feeling cool without judging.