Things you can’t get your head round, e.g Non ironers

[Supersares]

Is it just me or does anyone else not understand how people who don’t iron manage ? Whenever someone tells me they don’t iron my brain can’t compute how they manage to have clothes looking crinkle free- without consciously buying clothes that don’t need ironing! I hang clothes on coat hangers, fold consciously to avoid creasing but still have to iron things like blouses, dh shirts and my dd school skirts, for example. Do I need to buy better quality clothing, is that the key? Can any non ironers out there share their secrets please 😀🤓

I iron everything we wear if we're leaving the house, even stuff out of the tumble dryer just looks out of shape if not ironed. I refuse to do a big pile of ironing though, I do it on the day of wearing it or outfits the night before. A lot of it is psychological I think, clothes just feel better irons. Especially that crispy feeling you can get when you can't tumble dry things

I tried not ironing for a week to see if creases fa out. They don't and my boss told me off for looking scruffy. I felt scruffy. Its in our work policy that we have to iron our uniforms.
I love ironing. There is nothing for satisfying than getting through a big pile of ironing.

When DS started army cadets he had to iron his own uniform, it gets inspected for creases.
He asked me if we had an iron! I was so proud!!
I do have one but obviously very rarely use it.
He quickly realised I wasn't able to offer any tips!!

Can I be a middle ground person..?! The vast majority of our clothes (me and 3 DC) don't need ironing- I wash and line dry (who tumble dries- except for emergencies? That I DON'T get?!)
Clothes taken from the line and folded before going in an airing cupboard do not generally need ironing so I don't waste my (limited!) time. Some of my work clothes get an iron now and again and I do my eldest's school shirts on a good day... otherwise he sticks his blazer over it and it's hard to tell whether I've ironed it anyway! I just do them to make him feel more confident about himself. FWIW clothes where I have a choice are pure cotton or linen and they look smooth coming of an outdoor line. Winter = a bit more ironing.

Also middle ground for bleach- I don't have any at the moment and don't miss it, but I like to bleach my household cloths from time to time as I like to use cotton ones. That's it really... so I can probably survive without it tbh.

Hard no to disgusting chemical scents though, open a window and pop a bit of essential oil somewhere if really desperate. I always assume they are smelly people covering something up instead of just cleaning properly if I smell those scents! Will leave a pub/ restaurant if it smells from stuff like that.

I do Kondo folding, which needs a flat surface, so I use the ironing board for that. I’ll iron shirts and occasional linen, work trousers etc, but not a lot else. Kids are in non-uniform schools.

something that baffles me is inviting guests round and obviously not doing a single thing to tidy up for them. Like being invited for dinner, going to use the toilet and the bathroom is just a bomb site with stuff everywhere, no obvious hand towel just big damp Shower towels draped around, lid hanging off the dirty laundry basket etc. Toilet / sink not cleaned. Or there’s nowhere to sit in the living room because there’s stuff every where - work computers, toys, etc.

my house isn’t guest ready at all times, but when people are coming round we clean / tidy, for me it’s part of hosting (I think my mum may have drummed this into me!) and making people feel comfortable and welcomed.

Surely this is more about how you dry your clothes?

Everything is hung out out to dry straight after coming out of the washing machine. If you tumble dry, then you need to iron.

I never need to iron our clothes.

I iron most clothing (I’m not someone who bothers with tea towels, socks and duvet covers though!) and I really don’t see it as that much of a chore. I just do it when watching TV or listening to a podcast.

Personally I think you can tell whether or not something has been ironed, with the exception of some stretchy viscose/polyester dresses and tops.

I’m mid thirties and I feel like a bit of an anomaly for my generation. I think it’s interesting how habits change. Reading threads on here recently I’ve noticed that people tend to wash themselves more (lots of people shower twice a day!), wash their clothes more (many after every single wear), but iron a lot less than people used to.

I'd love to not iron, but no matter whether clothes are dried on the line or in the tumble drier, they are always very creased! Maybe I have a very creasable washing machine! I'd never iron pants, pj's, bed sheets though.

Not a big fan of bleach, and think zooflora etc, are disgusting. I don't get fabric softener (maybe that's why my clothes seem very creased??), or people who use so much washing powder or fabric conditioner you can still smell it on them when they come into work.

Life is too short for ironing anything other than work/school shirts

Bleach? Just why and for what?

Another septic tank owner here - if we put bleach down the loo, it will kill all the bugs in the tank - making a much worse problem

(I do have a septic tank friendly cleaning spray though - don't just leave it!)

I I don't iron but keep a very clean and tidy house . It's not something I would want to waste my time on when I can hang everything and it looks fine

I’m an iron as a I go girl, factor in 5 minutes in the morning to iron whatever is needed just because I don’t have the most hanging space to avoid them creasing again. Also hate ironing something then it’s folded and you get a crease, it ends up being ironed again. I hate creases clothing, nothing worse. Bleach i don’t use a lot of, just down toilets and sinks etc I use a multipurpose cleaner everywhere or some soapy water does the trick

@Mysteriousgirl2 id think the opposite - that tumble dried stuff doesn't need ironing and that's why people iron less, alongside more synthetic fibres, because more driers? I line dry and a quick press certainly improves the look of most things. And I love ironed duvet covers, they look and feel great.

I iron a few things when needed. Can't say I've ever looked at anyone and thought ' wow, you'd look better if that was ironed '. I'm just not bothered how others look I guess...

What I really really can't get my head round is people who don't clear the kitchen / do the washing up before bed!
How do they sleep??!! Imagine getting up to that in a morning....

I can't understand when people who do iron do it! How have you time for it?

I mainly iron my stuff during the summer I like cotton tops and they do look much improved with a quick iron. The odd shirt for my husband.

Many years ago (in the happy days before kids and larger disposable income) I used to take them all to Johnson's and they looked brand new each time!

I don't understand why people use toxic chemicals in their home. They cause all sorts of health problems and are very bad for children. The worst is air fresheners, which pollute constantly and make your living room smell like a public toilet.

I also don't understand why people use bleach so much, it's unhealthy and environmentally damaging. Also unnecessary, it is better to clean..

I'm a non-ironer myself except where essential, but I understand some people prefer properly flat clothes.

I love the feeling of freshly ironed things. It's a million miles away from the crumpled, grimy experience of being a kid with a parent who claimed it was unnecessary (she applied the same argument to vacuuming, cleaning windows, picking stuff up off the floor, washing, cleaning up after animals, removing animal fur from clothes...).

Before illness got in the way, I enjoyed sitting down with the steam generator and changing cotton items from limp and uneven to smooth, crisp and cool - especially bed linen. I'm actually a bit sad that DP doesn't believe it's necessary and cannot feel the difference between a crumpled, uneven sheet and a perfect, cool, crisp one. But I'm already ahead in that he does actually make the bed because I don't want to sleep on a bare mattress, quilt and pillows, whereas he really wouldn't care. So I'm not going to push it.

I don’t understand :

people who drop litter.
people who put loud after market exhausts on bikes and cars.

I don't iron, nor do I want to. I do keep a clean and tidy home as I have OCD (the officially diagnosed type) and cleaning helps my anxiety. Bleach - I only ever use it down the toilet, once a day. Not sure what else I could/should be using it for.

That being said, my eldest starts secondary school next year so I'll have to start ironing his shirts I guess? Up to now none of us wear anything that gets particularly creased, and a few shakes of the item usually sorts it out.

I don't understand ironers.

Creases drop out of clothes. Ironing is just another tool of the patriarchy to make sure women are exhausted. There's a reason men don't iron.

Non ironers here too. We do own an ironung board and iron but they only come out for weddings, funerals and interviews. I have always bought clothes that don't need ironing, I mainly wear merino wool and also have some cotton jersey and silk, no synthetics. We don't have a tumble dryer either. But we hang things flat on airers and they are fine. I don't see the point, can think of much better things to do with my time.

Well I don't think I've ever worn a blouse, DH only wears a shirt when he's in court (work) and irons it himself. DS hasn't started school yet but I or more likely DH as he's better at it, will iron his uniform. Everything gets an extra spin then line dried. I have a few smarter dresses that get an iron before I wear them but most of my clothes don't need it. I have more hanging space than drawers.

I don't understand people who leave toys all around their living rooms in the evening, how can it be relaxing or feel like an adult space?

I don't even own an iron. I regularly wear business clothes and DH wears shirts to work, we're both mod-senior management. I just hang shirts to dry on the line and hang them straight up on hangers and they're pretty much crease free. He also had quite a large beer belly which stretches any remaining creases out 😅 I'd say most of my clothes don't need ironing, really. Honestly, I can't imagine wasting my life ironing! We went to a role play city with DD yesterday (where they set up scenario play rooms) and she went to the laundrette play room and had no idea what the ironing board was! She also had no idea what coins were in the supermarket role play section but immediately knew how to do contactless.