Have a date or an important job interview?  Want to look your best?  Iron your shirt.  The other day we discussed doing the laundry (DIY: How to Do the Laundry ).  Now let's iron your shirt, here's how:

1. It helps to hang a shirt while still warm from the dryer-- we want to minimize the wrinkles to be ironed out
2. Set the iron to the proper setting and plug it in-- most dress shirts are 100% cotton or a cotton blend and there is a setting for each.  Use the steam setting, it helps remove wrinkles (this means you must add water-- distilled water is best)
3. Use a spray starch-- mist it on the spot you are about to iron.  Starch helps keep the pressed and crisp look longer
4. Start with the backside of the collar
5. Next iron the front side of the collar
6. Insert the collar stays and fold the collar ironing the inside of the collar
7. Now iron the outside of the collar
8. Now do the cuffs front side
9. Now the backside of the cuffs
10. If the shirt is a French cuff shirt, fold it over and iron the inside, then the outside
11. Now flatten the sleeve out and iron the front side, then the backside
12. Repeat that process on the other sleeve
13. Now iron the front side of the shirt left, then front side right
14. Now iron the backside of the shirt from the center out (I start dead center, then do backside right, them backside left)
15. Finally, hang the freshly ironed shirt and move on to the next

Remember a shirt is nothing more than a series of shapes or panels put together-- iron each panel flat and ultimately the shirt is ironed.

This process takes about ten minutes a shirt, but can save you a boatload of money ($2-3 per shirt).  I usually watch TV or listen to music as I do it.

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Related posts:
10 Wardrobe Preventative Maintenance Tips
Iron Your Own Shirts and Polish Your Own Shoes
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How to Do the Laundry Frugally