Читать книгу May Martin’s Sewing Bible: 40 years of tips and tricks - May Martin - Страница 18

An iron and ironing board are needed at every stage of a sewing project, so it’s a good idea to set them up in a convenient location before you start. The ironing board comes in handy as an extra work surface, too. Put two ironing boards together with a board on the top and you have an adjustable-height work surface!

Other useful pressing aids are:

A seam roll – this is a padded tube, great for pressing seams inside sleeves and trouser. The roll holds the seam edges away when pressing so the indents don’t occur. For a bargain alternative, go to your local fabric shop and pick up a tube from the middle of a roll of fabric. Wrap it in a thin towel – and hey presto, you have a seam roll! The longer length of this tube is excellent for pressing long seams such as the table runner. You could even use a tube of cardboard from inside a roll of kitchen paper or plastic food wrap.

Sleeve boards – a sleeve board is like a mini ironing board on legs – it stands on your ironing board and is great for pressing tubes such as sleeves and trouser seams. They are also useful when pressing children’s clothes, which have small, fiddly seams and shaping.

Brown paper, printer paper, sugar paper – cut into strips and position under your seam allowances to prevent them from imprinting on the right side of the garment.

Tailor’s ham – really useful for pressing darts, panels and shaping, as they mimic the contour of the body.

Needleboard: These are boards with rows of needles that stand up and position themselves in the pile of the fabric, preventing flattening of the pile. They are great for pressing fabrics with a pile. For an effective alternative, place a spare piece of the fabric pile side up on the ironing board, then put your garment pile side down on top and press.

Pressing cloth – a pressing cloth is a fine piece of muslin that you lay on top of your fabric. When dry, it protects the fabric while you iron; when dampened, it aids pressing and shrinking.

Pressing mat – a portable padded mat that can be placed to protect and pad any work surface so that you can press anywhere.