Pressing board

I was getting fed up with my old ironing board as it was too narrow and padded - not easy to get flat straight lines.
I've been busy with a sheet of MDF, batting, a cotton remnant and a borrowed staple gun.
Attachment 25270

I made a pressing board too. Mine was laminate wood that I put together and wood glued. Added a towel around it then took fabric and made a casing for it. Yours is longer than mine which I need for the bigger size. : )

I LOVE it! Have to make me one...

So need to make me one of these.

I use steam a lot and my board is no longer flat! Any suggestion for something else to use other than wood that doesn't cost a fortune? Has to be a better choice out there. Maybe I just need to put a vapor barrier on it before the batting and use the batting for heat resistance. That way I could cover the board in a heavy plastic. Has anyone else had this problem? Any suggestions?

Rebecca
I hadn't thought of the problem with steam. Hmm. But since our Brook used a laminate, perhaps you can find some laminated wood in the size you need? I think that would help some?

Blondie

You could cover it with a layer of foil first to both reflect heat and the protect the board somewhat from the steam.

I had my husband cut out a board that is big enough for a fat quarter to lay on, or just about, and a little wider. I don't have any batting that can take heat, so I used several layers of fabric (I think I did), and made a pillow case out of muslin. I have it on my ironing board, and it is very stable there. I love it. You definitely need something stiffer than an ironing board. If I had the room, I would but my made up board on a table, but I don't. I can put my regular ironing board right where I sit, lowered a bit, and then the made up board on top so it is very convenient to turn and press. I thought, you know, I hate to iron. Why did I take up a hobby with so much ironing? Oh, and I use steam, too, but haven't had a problem with the board warping, and I have used it quite some time now.

I also used MDF big enough to put on top of my ironing board, we took off the original board and screwed the MDF on, padded and fabriced it.....it's wide and sturdy and works like a dream!!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Claire Hallman

You could cover it with a layer of foil first to both reflect heat and the protect the board somewhat from the steam.

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Few years back, I was looking for info on ironing and making my own ironing board. Anyways, I wanted something big because I was sewing some cotton curtains for a large front window. Somewhere I read to put a layer of foil under your ironing board cover cause it would return the heat to the underside of what you were ironing and make ironing easier....
I ended up with a large rectangle tressle table from a garage sale, laid down a double layer of heavy duty foil, then a layer of cotton batting and then topped it with muslin. It did not hurt the finish to the top of table, if that's a concern. Since I started quilting and pressing fabrics, I've been thinking Ii'll be dragging that table back out, as I would love to have a larger ironing space and cutting table.

I made a ironing board out of a 4' x 2' piece of press board. I put down a 2 layers of batting then a layer of cotton duck cloth. For the outside layer I bought silver Ironing board cover from Joann's. It reflects heat and is used in hot pads. It seems to work great and no problems yet with steam. I have put the link to the item at Joann's below in case it will help anyone.

http://www.joann.com/ironing-board-c...lver/prd10219/

You could also use a layer of Insulbrite....the stuff you use in potholders.

I'll bet one of those silicone oven liners would work like dream, protecting the MDF or wood from the steam. There's also heat relective batting, used for potholders and such...Just a thought!

What is MDF?

I go to quilt classes with some gals who put a striped fabric on the top of their ironing surface. that way you can line up strips with the stripe in order to keep the fabric straight. Strips/Stripes--got that STRAIGHT?!!! LOL

NanaB, it's Multi Density Fiberboard. An engineered wood product.
I think it's made from various wood shavings and glue.

I made my own board and it measures 48" x 24"....I put double layer of warm n natural batting running both directions and then added a layer of cotton fabric.....perfectly fits my table and does double duty...I lay some of my fabrics on it to see what will work best together...also have a design wall made up of purple fleece stapled to the wall....works very well for me!

I had DH build up an old microwave cart to ironing board height (he just added blocks of wood to the top). Then he cut a piece of plywood about 30 x 40. He made a "frame" on the bottom of the plywood to set securely on the blocks on the cart. I covered the plywood with batting & 100% cotton canvas. Sprayed with water bottle & let dry. Canvas is now stretched taught. So now the board is removable in case I need the added space, but will probably leave the board on the cart 95% of the time. Makes it very nice when pressing yardage too!