Regarding last week's post about freezer paper I got the following comment from
Penny about her method of designing borders:
"I have also used a long pieces of freezer paper cut a little larger than needed then pencil marked for the exact size of borders needed for my Baltimore Album quilt. I then planned, designed and drew what I would applique on the border to match & complete quilt. After completing I then traced out the applique design to make freezer paper pattern pieces to use with the fabric I selected for border!" Thanks Penny. Great idea!
Do you ever get so deep into creative mode that you begin to toss things around? Nothing big, but the spool of thread misses the table and you have crawl under to find it. The fabric scraps that are too big to throw away end up in heap on the bed or the floor. You just don't take the time to maintain order. I have a handy, little, hobby iron:
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| My handy, dandy, little iron |
Now, I am a reasonably orderly person, but when I get into a project I can become a disaster, as happened a few days ago. Take a look at the photo below. I don't even have to explain my horror when I looked down and saw this.
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| Disaster strikes! |
I love this little iron. It has a handle I can grab ahold of, a sharply pointed tip, and it stays nice and hot. It has a wonderful little stand that holds it well when it is hot as long as I set it down right, which I didn't. I thought I did, but obviously wasn't paying close enough attention. I sighed, saddened that the iron was ruined just when I really needed it. The cutting mat is ancient, no great loss, but still plenty usable, and I have another. I lived with my sadness for a day or two and then headed for the Internet, my go-to problem solver. I found several sites that addressed the problem. I read them and thought about them for a few days before I "bit the bullet" and tried it. Here is the amazing result:
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| It looks like new! |
The fix is very simple and only took about 10 minutes; and this is my
TIP for the day. First I heated the iron to the "warm" setting, which was just enough to melt the adhered plastic. Then I grabbed my only plastic spatula and scraped the plastic off the iron. Finally I unplugged and held the iron in ice water for a few minutes after which time I should have been able to pull off any residual plastic. This last part didn't work so I heated the iron again, went over it with the spatula again, and finally wiped it with a thick pad of paper towel until I could no longer feel or see any lumps or bumps. It was thick enough to prevent my burning my fingers.
My last step was to use Iron-off to clean the surface of the little iron. I don't know if that is necessary, but I figured it can't hurt...and it didn't. This stuff is a wonder and has cleaned away the gunk on lots of my irons. Read the directions on the tube - very simple.
I am such a happy camper now!
Stitch some happy stitches this week and keep your hot iron off the plastic cutting mat.
Glad you were able to salvage the iron! I have one of those too and love it!
ReplyDeleteI just salvaged my curling iron using the same method. Although it was a disaster for your cutting mat and iron, imagine the disaster if it had been plugged in and a fire resulted!! I'm glad you're safe! lovelli
ReplyDeleteFortunately I was right there working so no fire. I plug into a power bar, but always unplug the iron even when the power bar is off. For some reason irons can still start fires if plugged in even if the bar is turned off.
DeleteI like the iron off cleaner and always keep it around for mishaps like this.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you were able to save the iron! Isn't it funny how a simple mistake can cause so much work?!
ReplyDeleteThank goodness you managed to clean the iron so successfully. Thank you for sharing the tip, though I wonder if iron cleaner is recommended for non-stick irons.
ReplyDeleteThe directions don't mention non-stick or otherwise. However, if it was non-stick would the plastic have stayed stuck? Don't know. There are good directions and cautions on the tube of Iron-off. Great stuff and easy to use.
DeleteI have never heard of that stuff before, I love your iron!
ReplyDeleteCheck Joann's or maybe Walmart.
DeleteGlad you looked around to save your little iron, that Iron Off is great stuff. It has taken a lot of crud off my irons over the years.
ReplyDeleteEven though my rowenta has a self clean function I still go through a few tubes of iron off a year - love it!!!
ReplyDeleteOh Mardi - that sight is enough to make your heart sink. I'm glad you recovered from it and thanks so much for the tip!!
ReplyDelete