This month is National Sewing Month if you didn’t notice…. {such a great kind of month, don’t you think?} I thought in celebration I would share one of my favorite notions in my sewing room. It’s a wooden iron.
I had received this little wooden iron or pressure a few years back at a quilt group. At first I hid it away, a little confused at how this really worked. But after a bit, I dug it out and gave it a try. Now it is in the covetted drawer in the sewing machine which holds all my favorite notions.
I am not one to use an iron..if you have sewn with me before you totally know that I don’t iron much. It just takes too much timebut, ironing is important when you are paper piecing.
That being said, i don’t use a traditional iron when i’m paper piecing. I use a little stick. Yup, a wooden one that has an angle at the ends that are used for pressing the fabric.
I am not sure why this wooden iron works, but it does and i love to use it! Besides the pressing, it makes it so you can have all your fabric pieces around you and the sewing machine and never get up off the chair when you are sewing the block together! You sew, use the wooden iron, sew again..wooden iron. Repeat, repeat. Block done.
A great way to give this little piece a work out is to of course use it! Mug rugs are little and the perfect size so– How about a free pattern!
It a paper piece pattern….2 mushroom blocks. The mug rugs finished size: 10 1/2″ X 11 1/2″. Perfect for your little plate of goodies and cup of yummy.
The pattern is available to download for free over on Crafsty. Don’t forget to snag the download all about different pre cut fabric sizes too!
For more fun during National Sewing Month, visit Heather at The Sewing Loft. She has an all month long party!
Do you have a favorite sewing notion? I’d love to hear about it!
Becky Jorgensen is the creative quilter behind Patchwork Posse, the Patchwork Planner and her online quilt group Patchworkers Plus. You can find her patterns in books, magazines, and her quilt membership. Gather your quilting supplies, organize your sewing space, explore the process of disappearing quilt blocks, or finish a free quilt pattern. I'll help you use what you have, finish what you start and make your quilting journey fun!
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I think the reason why it works is that it creases the paper and doesn’t shrink it like a too hot iron would do. I’ll have to try this as paper piecing is not my favorite thing to do. Carol
becky: Great post! Where do you buy this wooden ironing tool?
Hi Becky, I do not have a little wooden stick, hard for me to grasp, but a friend made me a wooden pin from a dowel, with round ends to mush down those pesky seams from a 4 or 6 patch center….works good…
I use 1/2 of a spring loaded wooden clothespin. No need to buy something special.