Old Sweetwater

Old Sweetwater

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Ironing Boards


Ironing just seemed to be the next logical place to visit after all the blogging about laundry.
I don't hate ironing, do you? Sometimes it's actually enjoyable. I think its the instant gratification of seeing wrinkles disappear before my eyes.
Summer is a challenging time to iron though. Heat should be tempered with cold, not more heat and steam.
When I was a child, women in my family ironed one day a week, even in July and August. They sprinkled the clothes in the morning or the day before. Anyone remember the sprinkler bottles? One clever second cousin kept the wet clothes in the refrigerator.
Then ironing day, they'd drag out the ironing board, iron, clothes basket and a box fan. The TV would be tuned to "As The World Turns," and they'd begin ironing.
Somehow it seemed relaxing and right. They knew their family would look crisp - at least for a few minutes. It didn't seem to upset them that they'd have to repeat this process the following week and the week after that.
Those women, in their aprons, were Proverbial women whose hands found work to do.
I can almost hear them hum, "This is the way we iron our clothes, iron our clothes, iron our clothes..."
p.s. The Purl Bee has a tutorial on making an ironing board cover on her site. Plus, City Chic Country Mouse has the cover above & more. Check them out!

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