My old experience wants a hard surface to press on. If the padding is too soft or has some give and cushion, it is to soft. Being soft will distort fabrics when pressing them.
My Ironing station is 5/8" thick plywood w/ holes drilled in it for steam to escape and covered w/ one layer of warm & natural batting and a cover of a heavy cotton muslin. It works great for me.
peace
EDIT: If I am using starch I will lay another piece of muslin over the board in the area where I am using starch. This absorbs the extra starch and I can just throw it in the wash and re use it with out having to change the whole cover.
My ironing station is big. About 3'w x 4.5'l. I love it. Great for ironing yardage.
Last edited by ube quilting; 07-15-2013 at 12:36 PM.