Dear Home Ec 101,

How do you iron a really big (rectangular) table cloth without wrinkling the part you just ironed when it hits the floor? Can one person do it alone or do you need two people: one to iron, one to hold the tablecloth straight?

~Wrinkled in Wrights Beach

Ivy says:

Ironing is my least favorite chore. I figure, life is too short for ironing, so I just always toss wrinkly items into the dryer with a damp towel and go on with my day. However, if you want something to look nice and crisp, sometimes ironing is the way you have to do.

Ironing large items like tablecloths is a pain. If you have a freestanding ironing board, move it next to your table and move the cloth to the table as you iron it. If you are a freak like Heather (kidding, y’all!) and your ironing board is built in, fold the tablecloth loosely into a size that will fit your ironing board and carefully iron it folded. Then make sure you get any creases out - go ahead and let the tablecloth fall to the floor for this, it shouldn’t crease badly once ironed.

If you have embroidery on your tablecloth, make sure you are ironing the wrong side of the cloth- it will make your embroidery stand out nicely. You can use a towel underneath to help the embroidery stand out.

Submit your question by sending an email to helpme@home-ec101.com