Cynthia’s Corner

“A Clean Sole”

Just recently I got an inspiration to sew at 5:00 in the morning when my house is quiet and there is no one to bother me. I had slept with several patterns and a couple of Vogue and Threads magazines the night before (my husband is out of town and these are the next best things). I got my fabric out to press before cutting and thank goodness I looked at the bottom of the iron before it touched my fabric. It was then that I realized that my son had once again victimized my Rowenta Iron! The sole plate of my iron looked like a melted rainbow.For some reason he thinks that every piece of clothing that he owns can be ironed on the hottest setting! As I calmed down, I knew that I had to clean my iron before starting my project. These are the steps that I take to clean the sole plate of my iron.

1. Pour all of the water out of the iron. The cleaning is done with a dry iron, no steam.2. Turn the iron to the hottest setting which is for linen and cotton.3. Cut a strip of muslin about 24 inches long and about 10 inches wide. Fold fabric until it is about 3/8 to 1/2 inch thick.

4. Apply Dritz Iron Off Hot Cleaner (about the size of a quarter) to the muslin pad. Rub in a circular motion until the residue starts to disappear from the sole plate. You may have to refold the muslin and apply of the iron cleaner depending on how much of a “melted rainbow” you have.

To clean the steam vents, use the tip of the muslin or a Q-tip. Once the sole plate is cleaned you can add water to the iron and give it a few burst of steam to remove any iron cleaner that may be left in the steam vents. Once the cleaning process is completed, use a clean cloth to wipe the sole plate and its edges clean making sure all of the iron cleaner is removed.

I really like the Dritz Iron Off Hot Cleaner because it is easy to use and the best of all, it really works! You can tell this in the before and after photo’s of my iron.However, the iron cleaner will not remove any discoloration in the metal finish.

TIPS:

• Be sure to pour all water out of your iron, no steam–OUCH!!

• You may want to cover your ironing board cover to prevent any of the iron cleaner from getting on it.

• Be careful because your iron will be VERY HOT!

• Buy your kids their own iron!!!!!!!