Clothes steamer - opinions please? - YouLookFab Forum

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Clothes steamer - opinions please?

Sal

Veteran

Hi All

I have an iron and use it regularly ( but I am not the best at it nor am I someone who irons everything). I do dryclean - mostly coats and the odd other occasion wear piece or blazer....

I am wondering whether a steamer is a worthwhile purchase - I don't have one but thought it might be good for refreshing blazers, coats etc.. or even to replace ironing for some pieces.

Brand recommendations are appreciated although availability may be different.

Thanks in advance
Sally

General

18 replies

Latest reply was from Matthew

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Well, I JUST ordered this, and will see how it goes.

BEAUTURAL Steamer for Clothes with Pump Steam Technology, Portable Handheld Garment Fabric Wrinkles Remover, 30-Second Fast Heat-up, Auto-Off, Large Detachable Water Tank

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2

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I use our steamer more often than the iron, by far. And I don’t even use it that much! I use an iron maybe once or twice a year in recent years but use the steamer maybe 6-10 times a year.

We have a Shark and it’s getting a little old (it takes longer to heat up than it used to) but still does the trick. We may need a new one next year.

Joy

Veteran

I had a large one but they can take up a lot of room. I did not move mine when we moved. Looking at houses one had a built in steaming closet. That seemed cool. It was located in the laundry room and could hold 2 or 3 garments hanging at a time. Our realtor said she sometimes uses her steam shower. She had it installed and loved it for herself too. You want something fairly powerful and handy to use.

Sal

Veteran

I look forward to your review Angie!!

Janet - thanks for that. I need to iron more in summer (cotton and linen mostly) but I sometimes feel my knitwear and blazers could do with a refresh but don't need a dryclean.

I could take my clothes into the shower Joy - have done that whilst travelling before.

Anonymous

I do the lazy persons steamer trick (doesn't always work). I toss the garment in the dryer with a damp little towel.
Been meaning to get a steamer for when that doesn't work!

Anonymous

I too use the steamer more than the iron . I bought one from Bed Bath & Beyond a few years ago after having done zero research on them and whatever I bought was just fine . Like by Phillips or some other basic manufacturer . It wasn’t pricey and I’m glad I have it .

Minaminu

Veteran

I have a small handheld steamer from Steamery, I like to use it for knitwear and silk items and it works beautifully!

kkards

Veteran

I have not used an iron in 15 years..i steam. I have a bigger unit (like the kind you see in retail stores), but about 5 years ago i got a dryer with a steam cycle, and that’s what i use most of all...but that won’t help you...so, yes to hand held steamer, but, with the call out, if you are looking for crisp starched garments, a steamer will not make you happy.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I meant to clarify that ours is a small handheld one (Shark Press & Refresh) — I think it must be almost ten years old. I don’t have a good place to store a large one but I think handheld can do the trick nicely. I recently used it to steam the fold wrinkles out of a couple of tablecloths I used for holiday decorating (to cover the tables I used for Christmas village displays). Easy to do with a handheld even with the cloths already on the tables.

Joy

Veteran

Janet, that is a great idea to use a steamer on tablecloths. I just ironed my holiday ones but they were not put immediately on the table so have fold creases again. Y biggest problem was that my big ones used lots of distilled water and I always forgot to stock up.. you need a dedicated place to hang things while steaming unless you have a big one with a hanger built in.

Minaminu

Veteran

Sal, I hope you don't mind if I jump in and ask a question to the people who already own a steamer... I often apply some rose or neroli water in the steamer, am I the only one?!

nemosmom

Veteran

I have a giant Jiffy one, with the tall pole and wheeled base. It is a monster, but I haven't touched an iron in ages. I store it in our spare walk-in shower LOL!
I use it to refresh sweaters when I pull them out of storage boxes in the fall, and in-between wears. It has enough oomph to get wrinkles out of tencel and linen, too, but it won't give you sleeve or pant creases, if that is what you are after.

nuancedream

Veteran

I have a small hand held Rowenta Steam N'Press which saves me from dragging out the ironing board. It's great for refreshing sweaters, silks, and viscose dresses. One of the best Christmas gifts from my mother.

Jane

Veteran

We have one but I’ve stopped using it. We have a really super steam iron so it is difficult to beat. But we also have hard water and it does mean that unless I used filtered in the steamer, the first few moments of the steam would be sludgy coloured. Jolly irritating!

Cardiff girl

Veteran

Just got one for Xmas so can’t advise on the make but I absolutely loved using one when I worked in a shop.l don’t think of it as a replacement for an iron but an adjunct for quickly running over a garment that’s been ironed but maybe got abit crumpled in storage.

MsMaven

Veteran

Four years ago I bought a Joy Mangano My Little Steamer mini after reading an online discussion. Could have been here. We’ve had smaller steamers for travel over the years but this one is great to keep handy at home. I do still iron, but not often. It’s great to have an easy to use steamer handy.

Sal

Veteran

Very interesting. I think I would use one given the responses. It is mostly for jackets and blazers and the odd pair of trousers or a dress that need refreshing.

I used to be better with ironing than I am. When I was a nanny for the landed gentry in England I had to iron everything from boxer shorts to shirts to pillowcases to tea towels. I seem to have bad luck here with the water marking things when I steam iron.

Matthew

Member

Hi - as per the origonal message from Sally I too am looking for a good steamer. A friend recently let me try their Propress MINI steamer (this one: https://www.propress.co.uk/pro.....s-steamer/) and it was great. But it seems a little expensive at £110 so wanted to see a) if you think it is worth the price, and b) what you would recommend if not this one.