The Quest for... the perfect iron

I know, I know. Who irons in the day of whisk it from the dryer or better yet, air dry? Well, I iron. I don't even mind ironing provided there's something on TV to watch or I have a tape or DVD. Ironing is mindless, which may explain why I'm not the world's best ironer, but it's not rocket science either.

However, finding the perfect iron is.

It needs to be heavy enough to get the job done; I want to feel like I have something in my hand worthy of pressing. It needs to get to steam-temperature quickly (I am impatient) and not spit. (A dream, I know.) A non-stick plate and using tap water completes the deal. These should really be easy to fulfill.

So why am I still hunting perfection?

My mother would always want to know what I wanted for Christmas. This is how I got a 55-cup coffee maker than every one in town knows I have and they all borrow--whether I'm going to the party or not. If that pot could talk... but that's another post. One year I told her I wanted an expensive iron, one that would be a sure thing on the ironing board. I received a Rowenta . It worked well enough for a while but when I had problems with it (can't remember exactly what), the company was no help because Mother had bought it at a department store and not a dealer. Scratch off Rowenta.

I retreated back to Wal-Mart and have had various steam irons. None suited after a year and maybe that's what the shelf life is. Tap water or not, draining or not, eventually the steamer dried up and the plate, even though I cleaned it, scratched and snagged my clothing. Last year's entry in the sweepstakes was a Black and Decker Classic. Very heavy. I thought I'd met my match, but it slowed on the steam end.

I even bought a very lightweight one for use at my dad's assisted living facility when I needed to iron for him, but it has proven to not have enough heft. I searched on it for a brand name for this blog, but there isn't one! No sign of manufacturer, only "steam iron" and "made in China." Don't you just love it?

The latest to grace by wooden ironing board (I have two) is from Sunbeam , the Steam Master Drip Free. So far, so good.

But my all time favorite irons are those found in hotels. They're hot, they're fast and the next time we stay in one, I'm doing a survey, hoping there's a name and a model number and filing it for future reference. This is a quest that's not going away.