Pressing is not just a suggestion, it is a necessity.  As I have said before, I keep my ironing board up when I am sewing because I always press fabric before cutting (if it is not smooth) and I press seams open or press hems into place, etc.

I have a steam iron and I use DISTILLED water.  The manufacturer says that tap water will work, but I have my doubts.  Tap water contains minerals that can eventually build up deposits inside your steam or spray mechanism.  I just use distilled water in mine because it is very inexpensive and one gallon goes a long way.

One thing that really BUGS me though is filling the iron with water.  Even when I am extremely careful and try to pour slowly, I can still spill water onto the board.  I finally found a very easy solution that works every time.  I went to the dollar store and purchased a plastic squeeze bottle and I fill it with water first.  Such a simple thing, but I just love how it makes my ironing just a little easier!

On the subject of ironing… who remembers THIS contraption?

When I was little, my mother used one of these to sprinkle water on items to be ironed.  She would roll the dampened items up and then iron them one by one.  This was before “steam” irons or even water spray bottles.  There was canned STARCH of course and she used that too.  Boy, don’t you just love fabric blends???