MORE wool pressing mats
#1
Super Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Idaho
Posts: 1,294
MORE wool pressing mats
I did do a search looking for this but could not find answers.
I have a small mat and i have picked it up to discover dampness underneath.
My sis and I just got bigger mats and i wonder what you all do regarding the care?
If it is used on your Martelli table will it warp it?
I have those 6” plastic folding tables. Would it warp that?
I have learned that after use you should move it, stand it up maybe, so that it can breath and air dry?
So attaching it to a board or wood TV tray would probably not be a good idea?
If anyone has any helpful info it would be appreciated.
Thank you all.
I have a small mat and i have picked it up to discover dampness underneath.
My sis and I just got bigger mats and i wonder what you all do regarding the care?
If it is used on your Martelli table will it warp it?
I have those 6” plastic folding tables. Would it warp that?
I have learned that after use you should move it, stand it up maybe, so that it can breath and air dry?
So attaching it to a board or wood TV tray would probably not be a good idea?
If anyone has any helpful info it would be appreciated.
Thank you all.
#2
Power Poster
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 17,861
Dampness underneath doesn't sound good and what it could mean over time.
Anything I say here has no experiential validation, as I have never used them.
My thoughts went immediately to mould/mildew and buggyboos!
Nasty Nasty stuff it could mean.
As for in-between uses, I would wonder if standing it on end, could warp the fibres and surface, and that you might inadvertently not have a smooth surface for ironing on. Rather a rippled mess. My thought would be to set it on a mesh cookie cooling rack to let it cool and dry.
But like I said ... my thoughts may be so off here.
So listen to those who have experience.
But you have given me reasons to think a bit more about this as to whether it is something I would get in the future. Or not!
Anything I say here has no experiential validation, as I have never used them.
My thoughts went immediately to mould/mildew and buggyboos!
Nasty Nasty stuff it could mean.
As for in-between uses, I would wonder if standing it on end, could warp the fibres and surface, and that you might inadvertently not have a smooth surface for ironing on. Rather a rippled mess. My thought would be to set it on a mesh cookie cooling rack to let it cool and dry.
But like I said ... my thoughts may be so off here.
So listen to those who have experience.
But you have given me reasons to think a bit more about this as to whether it is something I would get in the future. Or not!
Last edited by QuiltE; 08-28-2020 at 07:38 AM.
#3
Super Member
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 1,002
Wool is porous, so if you are using steam or spritzing the fabric with water or starch it will travel through a wool mat. I have some wool mats that are trivets and they hold moisture for days if dripped on. I do leave them on a clothing drying rack to dry out.
If you use steam or water mist or starch I would not leave a wool mat on top of a painted, wood, or other surface or material that could be damaged by moisture.
I would find some way for there to be good air circulation around all sides of a wool mat when not in use.
If you use steam or water mist or starch I would not leave a wool mat on top of a painted, wood, or other surface or material that could be damaged by moisture.
I would find some way for there to be good air circulation around all sides of a wool mat when not in use.
#5
Power Poster
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Southern USA
Posts: 16,515
All the wool mats I have bought have instructions to use a heat/water proof protection underneath it. The mats let heat and steam go straight through. It will damage any surface that can't take the heat and dampness. I use a teflon oven liner under mine.
#7
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: kansas
Posts: 6,407
the moisture if from steam iron use. And yes you need to be using a heat proof surface underneath. The wool holds heat very well, but is not heatproof or moisture proof. I have a full wool cover on my ironing board. I no longer use steam except on yardage, so avoid shrinkage and distortion.
#8
Super Member
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 1,079
I use an oven liner too and a towel under mine. Then air dry when finished with it for the day.
#10
Considering that the surface frame of an ironing board is perforated, it makes sense to have that type of surface under the wool mat too. QuiltE, I have also been contemplating the usefulness/expense of a wool pressing mat. I think I will continue to contemplate instead of buying.