How to Iron a Shirt
If you do not know how to iron a shirt properly, you will end up with burn marks on your favorite shirt. Therefore, let us start the article with the preparation work needed for ironing a shirt. First of all, check out the label of the shirt, which will give you information about the type of clothing material used in the shirt. It usually also carries the instructions as to what temperature the iron should be set at for proper ironing of the shirt. Then set up the ironing board in a clean area. Lay the shirt on the ironing board with chest side on the top. If the shirt is in a buttoned condition, unbutton it, including the button in the sleeves and collar. In case the shirt has wrinkled up after the wash, dampen it with some water before you iron it. The iron should be filled with water ( distilled water is preferred) up to its maximum level and set the temperature level of the iron as recommend on the shirt label. Wait for a minute or two before you start doing the ironing.
How to Iron a Shirt Fast?
For your convenience, it is advisable to divide the shirt into different sections and iron each of them step by step. This will also help in ironing the shirt quite fast. They main steps to iron a shirt are as follows:
Ironing the Collar
There are many people who can otherwise manage the rest of the shirt but do not know how to iron a shirt collar. This is because ironing the collar is a bit tricky. However, once you know the technique, it will not pose much of a problem. Lay the collar of the shirt straight on the ironing board and iron the inside portion first. Start from the tip of the collar and move the iron inwards. Then turn it over and iron the other side in the same manner. After that, fold the collar as you do when wearing the shirt and move the tip of the iron over the fold.
Ironing the Yoke
The yoke is the section of the shirt that joins the collar and the body of the shirt. You should take one shoulder at a time. Slide the shirt to the narrow end of the ironing board and place it with the inside face of the yoke up and iron it. You may have to move the iron on this area twice if the wrinkles are too much. Some people find it easy to iron the yoke by buttoning up the collar. Repeat the same process for the other shoulder.
Ironing the Sleeves
Now it's time to iron up the sleeves. While ironing the sleeves, care has to be taken that the existing crease be kept intact. Place one sleeve along the length of the board with the front side up and iron the inside and the outside area at the end of the sleeve or the cuff first. Then iron the sleeve starting from the cuff towards the shoulder and again move the iron down to the cuff. Similarly, iron the back side of the sleeve as well. The same method of ironing has to be repeated for the other sleeve.
Ironing the Body of the Shirt
The easiest part of ironing a shirt is to iron the body of the shirt. Lay out the front panels of the shirt and begin ironing one panel from the area near the collar and go up to the seams. If the shirt has got pocket, then it should be ironed first. Once you are done with the main section of both the front panels, use the tip of the iron to work on the areas that lie in between the buttons. Next is the back part of the shirt. Turn the shirt over and spread it completely and then iron the back of the shirt. It will be easier if you divide the back part into two halves and iron each half at a time.
Make sure that the iron is heated properly. It is important because if the temperature is too low then the wrinkles will stay on the shirt whereas too much of heat will ruin the shirt with scorch marks. Do not go for a tea break in between ironing a shirt or else ugly burn marks are bound to appear on the shirt. After ironing, hang the shirt properly to prevent wrinkle formation all over again. Button up the collar button of the shirt on the hanger which will help to maintain the shirt in shape.
