The Handbook - How To Guides
 
 
 
31 Days: Style Tips and Tricks
 
Volume 2
 

All the tips and tricks needed to shape up for 2010. Each day brings new, expert advice on how to look your best and live life to the fullest, while having a little fun doing it.

Clothes
Day
18

How to Iron

We asked the production team at Thomas Pink's London studio for a detailed, yet uncomplicated guide to the perfectly ironed shirt. Here's how they do it.

 
1

Unbutton the shirt. Ideally, the shirt is still a bit damp (either from the wash or a spray bottle).

 
2

Remember to remove the collar stays before you start ironing. Start from the back of the collar and iron the fabric towards the middle in small circles. Flip the shirt over, and repeat on the outside of the collar. Prolong your shirt's life by avoiding the tips of the collar.

 
3

Secure one shoulder over the narrow end of the board and iron from the yoke to the center of the back. Repeat on the other shoulder.

 
4

Lay one sleeve flat on the board with buttons or cuff-link holes facing up. Iron the inside of the cuff first then flip the sleeve over to iron the outside of the cuff. Next, iron the sleeve, beginning with the front side. Repeat with the other sleeve.

 
5

Time for the placket and the body of the shirt. Use the point of the iron to press the fabric in between the buttons on the placket. To iron the body of the shirt, place one side along the ironing board, fitting the armhole into the curved end of the ironing board and smooth the fabric and press.

 

Valet Endorsed

Black & Decker's Classic Iron, $30 at Amazon

FYI

Iron dark fabric inside out to prevent that embarrassing sheen known as "glazing the fabric."

 
 
Clothes
Etiquette
Food & Drink
Space
Personal Care
A Month of Tips