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#1 2006-08-05 17:25:55
- mrwynn
- Member
- Posts: 34
How to press a suit?
The thread on dry cleaners has inspired me. I have always done my own shirts at home and I would love to get some pointers on pressing my suits at home as well. Do any of you guys press/steam your own suits?
#2 2006-08-05 17:47:51
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: How to press a suit?
Pressing a suit requires professional equipment that makes it impractical for home use. Plus, it's inadvisable to press a suit without first cleaning it, otherwise you'll be impregnating the cloth with embedded dirt.
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#3 2006-08-05 18:12:18
- Film Noir Buff
- Dandy Nightmare
- From: Devil's Island
- Posts: 9345
Re: How to press a suit?
I never press my own suits. At most Ill touch up a shirt collar and or cuffs. I do have a professional grade steamer that I take wrinkles out with. It works wonders and was well worth the investment. I dont like my clothes too neatly creased anyway, It looks like one is trying too hard.
Ive mentioned my steamer on AAAC many times but have been uniformly sidestepped about it, presumably because people dont want to hear about the expense. The cheaper or hand held ones are a complete waste of time and money. Ive saved myself many times at 8pm steaming awful wrinkles out of a DJ crushed in the back of a closet.
#4 2006-08-06 06:47:02
- mrwynn
- Member
- Posts: 34
Re: How to press a suit?
This may sound strange, but my wife is getting me a professional gravity-fed iron for my birthday and I want to put it to the best use. If you steam clean a suit, is that done with a steamer? Or are there more steps involved?
#6 2006-08-06 11:49:54
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: How to press a suit?
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#7 2006-08-09 14:32:11
- Horace
- Member
- Posts: 6433
Re: How to press a suit?
Speaking of "ironing" a suit -- I've just found four or five articles that are of interest on the history of the suit. One was discussing the way the ironing of the suit (with an actual iron) was eclipsed by a professional press machine. I reckon that an iron still does the job for those who know what they're doing. At least parts of the suit must benefit from this, no? I remember Beaman had some pics of ancient-looking irons in use by tailors.
As for pressing a suit -- I guess Grayson is right on the need for the suit to be cleaned before pressing. But there are still men's shops around that will give your suit a good brushing and then press it while you wait. With the decline of the campus and men's shop, this service has also fell by the wayside.
""This is probably the last Deb season...because of the stock market, the economy, Everything..." - W. Stillman.
#8 2006-08-09 17:23:03
- Marc Grayson
- Member
- Posts: 8860
Re: How to press a suit?
"‘The sense of being perfectly well dressed gives a feeling of inner tranquility which even religion is powerless to bestow." Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Looking good and dressing well is a necessity. Having a purpose in life is not." Oscar Wilde
#9 2006-08-12 09:40:56
- maximus
- Member
- Posts: 265
Re: How to press a suit?
My wife pressed a suit once with a handkerchief under the iron. She scorched the material and made it shine. A few commercial laundries have done the same. But I would prefer a pro do this for me than a member of the family.
I shall commission a suit:
So let it Bespoken
So let it be done!
#10 2006-08-12 13:08:04
- mrwynn
- Member
- Posts: 34
Re: How to press a suit?
Well, it really isn't as hard as all that. I don't mean to belittle how important pressing is in the construction of a suit, which is a totally different beast. The simple pressing of a coat or trousers is rather easy if you have the right gear. To deal with the shine you use a teflon coated, dry, pressing cloth. You will also need what I have always called a ham, which is a cloth covered, egg I suppose, that looks similar to a canned ham. This is used when pressing the shoulder.
I've never tried to reshape a suit that has gotten wet -- and I wouldn't dare try -- but flattening out any seams or even fixing the roll of a lapel is quite easy.
One note about gravity-fed irons, they really aren't all that outlandish. I've never seen one that ran on 220V. At the end of the day all it's just an iron with a separate, larger water supply.
I've even had a lesson from a bespoke leatherwear maker on pressing leather garments. Again dead easy.
What I'm curious about is the steam-cleaning process. Is it as simple as passing steam through the garment?
#12 2006-08-22 03:57:18
- Miles Away
- Member
- From: Miles away
- Posts: 1180
Re: How to press a suit?
" ... Ubi bene, ibi patria, which being roughly translated means, 'Wherever there's a handout, that's for me, man.' "
Alistair Cooke. 1968.
#14 2006-08-22 08:13:52
- mrwynn
- Member
- Posts: 34
Re: How to press a suit?
Well, getting a nice roll has much more to do with the construction of the jacket -- where the taping is and the shape of the chest piece -- and with using a light touch. If the jacket is well made, if you just press the lapel with the collar up, when you fold the collar back down the roll will be there in all it's glory. What is much more difficult and what I'm not willing to try is to force a roll that isn't meant to be. I know it is possible to press a 3 button into a 2 & 1/2 roll, but that can involve creasing a small portion of the chest piece. Not recommended.
#15 2006-08-22 08:42:00
- Miles Away
- Member
- From: Miles away
- Posts: 1180
Re: How to press a suit?
Very wise.
" ... Ubi bene, ibi patria, which being roughly translated means, 'Wherever there's a handout, that's for me, man.' "
Alistair Cooke. 1968.