This thread is great.
My S21 just left for an 8 week immersion language program this week and he specifically asked me to order him a small steamer so that he can press his shirts when he’s there!
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I don’t think we failed not teaching our kids to iron. (Actually, my husband is better at it - he had school uniforms growing up). I just don’t consider it a required life skill these days with dryers and modern fabrics. If they need to learn someday, they will have to figure it out on their own or consult youtube 
Lots of folks prefer ironed clothing … that’s fine too.
It is helpful that so many hotels have irons and ironing boards. That can be handy when traveling to a wedding. But we usually try the bathroom hot water steam trick first.
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I made my own steam cabinet on a whim a few years ago. We have a small coat closet that never has anything in it so i hung 5 or 6 pices of clothing in there, stuck the steamer inside, turned it on and shut the door. Fifteen minutes later, voila! Wrinkle free clothes. Definitely not as good as ironing, but close enough for me.
Now I own a dryer with a steam function. That works great too.
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When my oldest was 3, his preschool teacher expressed concern that he didn’t do well on some sort of assessment. Turns out he had no idea what an iron and ironing board might be!
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We’ve never worn any clothing or used any bed/bath/kitchen linens without first laundering them, so I never understood that complaint.
This thread has reminded me of ironing my pleated uniform skirts in high school. My mother usually bought them second hand and they needed a lot of starch to hold a crisp pleat. Sunday nights meant ironing my uniforms and polishing my shoes. I wonder if that’s why I now have such a preference for cotton knits and suede shoes for the majority of my wardrobe.
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I read your post to my Mr. His reaction? Laughing. Then he asked, “Are you sure WE have an iron in this house? I have not seen it.” Why? Nordstrom no iron shirts. 
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I iron. We have an ironing board set up in the extra bedroom…the family joke is…can I find an ironing board cover that matches the bedclothes.
I don’t like wrinkles…and I wear mostly cotton clothes.
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I do iron blouses and pants. I also wear mostly cotton clothes. I use Downy Wrinkle Releaser Spray on some things.
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My son wears by the Downy product. Of course he’s like looking for perfection but convenience
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Husband actually irons more than me. He likes ironed sheets and now does them himself; he knows I am not doing them anymore. He irons shorts and shirts and pants too. I just ironed a brand new pair of linen pants because I washed them and wanted to see how much difference ironing makes. And we use cloth napkins, most of which I will iron. And an occasional cotton shirt and such. Stopped ironing denim a few years back.
My mother never ironed because our cleaning lady did it - from a basket filled with clothes that had been sprinkled with water first. My MIL could and did spend hours ironing, but her id or ego or whatever was totally encompassed by housework. It was her raison d’être.
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When we were working, we took our work clothes to the dry cleaner, there’s no way I was going to do the ironing, I’m not a superwoman period. I try not to do everything. I used to love sewing but I don’t do that anymore. I stick to cooking and gardening, much more enjoyable.
I should have said that I feel that I’ve failed my children in teaching them to look presentable when going out in public. Not because they don’t iron.
I didn’t articulate that well.
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I sew, therefore I iron. I live in an older house with an ironing board that you pull down from the wall. Love it. I have a wool ironing pad that is great. I also have a very expensive iron (i used a coupon when buying it).
I iron almost everything I put on in the summer. Cotton shirts, cotton shorts or pants. Not even 5 minutes. I ha.ve a steamer but mostly use it for cotton sweaters or suits.
When I worked, I wash all my shirts and iron all of them about every 2 weeks, so it was a 30-45 minute job.
My brother had an important event and I did his shirt. He said “How did you do that?” Hmm, I ironed it.
When I was little, my mother ironed while watching General Hospital every afternoon. I folded diapers and matched socks (I was 3-4 years old). Yes, she had a sprinkle bottle, but we didn’t put anything in the freezer (wouldn’t have fit in the tiny top freezer on an old fashioned fridge. Actually the sprinkle thing was just a stopper you put in another bottle, like a diet-pepsi bottle. I thought that was very cool.
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I vividly remember the coke bottle with the sprinkle top. And I remember the sprinkled clothes in the refrigerator. Someone must have given my mother the coke bottle because we never had coke (or any other soda in the house.)
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Same here.
And nothing would have gotten ironed in my house growing up if not for “As The World Turns” and “Art Linkletter’s House Party” on TV. You DID NOT touch that dial.
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There was a time (when things were a bit more dressy, even in techie world) where I’d drop off my husband’s work shirt sometimes at dry cleaner. Not every time… they seemed to look nicer after home washing if they’d been to dry cleaner the previous washing.
Then after the 2nd kid that stop on the way home from work/childcare was too cumbersome for me. I suggested that he do the dry cleaning errands himsel (or iron as he had done with school uniforms). Guess who decided that shirts out of the dryer (if hung promptly) were just fine?
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I iron everything including the sheets. Just a little bit of attention makes the clothes look so much better in my opinion. I have a TV in the laundry room and catch up on my shows while doing it.
I have tried so many different irons and finally found that the best solution for me is a steam station. It generates so much more steam than a traditional iron and gets the job done really fast. This is the Rowenta steam station I’m using right now.
And this is my ironing board. I like it because it’s large, sturdy and rolls easily into the cabinet for storage.
The only drawback to the steam station is that it takes a bit to heat up and get the steam going. So if I just need to iron 1 or 2 pieces really fast, I use a traditional Chi iron and a small ironing board that is mounted into the wall. I guess you could say I’m a little obsessive about ironing. 
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Wow! That is the most expensive iron I have seen but it looks like it is a dual steamer/iron?
If you want to steam something really fast, this beast gets ready in 15-20 seconds.
Yes, it is like a dual steamer/iron. The sole plate gets hot and has tons of holes for steam. It works just like a traditional iron, but the heavy steam generator portion stays on the counter. I can do a lot of ironing without having to refill the water in the generator base. The iron part can also be held vertically and used like a steamer on hanging clothes or drapes. It produces a lot more steam than a traditional steam iron.
I have that same ironing board and do have a Rowenta, but not the same model. I’m not sure which model I have, but I bought it through Williams Sonoma. I used two less expensive Rowenta models in the past, and after a while both started leaking. So far, I’ve had good luck with the new model. I’ve tried other irons and none have been as good as the Rowenta.
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