I have been working today on making quilted pillows and things were going a long quite well. My cat always hangs around the ironing board. I don't let her on it and today she jumped up on it I went to shew her off as I never let her on the ironing board and the iron fell on my arm and I got a nasty burn. What do you do to keep your cat off the ironing board?

Good luck with that.

My cats love the warmth they get from the ironing board. I just use a lint roller on it when they do get on it to make sure the loose hairs are gone.

um...put it away?

My cats haven't decided to check out the ironing board, they are quite content with the dining room table/chairs, or whatever quilt is currently in progress. Right now I don't have my ironing board out, and I put it away when I'm not sewing as I live in a 1br apt and space is at a premium. However, it could be worse - it could be an efficiency in NYC!

I have mine in an area where they don't jump on it. Mine hate the ironing board. When I set it up, it screeches worse than fingernails on a chalkboard...

I havent had my cats get on the ironing board but they well get on my sewing desk when sewing thats a pain. Take care of your burn!!!!

My sewing room is my spare guest bedroom. I do not allow any cats in there for just this reason. I do not want them to get accidentally cut with a rotary cutter or eat thread or swallow a pin or needle. I know the chances of that happening are slim to none but why take chances. My other spare bedroom has the long arm in it and is also off limits to my furry feline friends. I love them dearly and they can sit on me, sit on my completed quilts, sit on my lap while I am hand quilting but I do not allow them in the sewing rooms.

I don't have a cat to worry about. Birds, yes, but they don't come into the sewing room. Sorry about the burn...

First....so sorry about your arm...take care of it as burns can be bad. Now about the silly cats....Mine jumps up on it ALL the time!! He's over 20 pounds and I'm always afraid that he is going to knock the whole board over...iron and all!! I don't know what to do about it either. I'm just really careful about how I leave my iron. Cats and quilting make an interesting combination!http://www.freesmileys.org/emoticons...animal-035.gif

She hasn't jumped up on the ironing board for a long time.

Mine respond instantly with a spray bottle. Now all I have to do is wave it in the air and call out "Spray BOTTLE!" and they both start running!! Of course they would sit on the ironing board when I'm not there, but I have one that folds up into the wall when I'm through with it. It was built into the house when it was built in 1940 or so.

It doesn't take much time to train the cats to a spray of water.
Most of them seem to hate water in their faces.

Good luck with that. My Trouble cat loved the ironing board. My husband used to warm up the wide end for her when he ironed his shirt in the mornings. I used to pin my blocks to the ironing board to preview them. Trouble cat would one by one remove the pins and drop them on the floor. All the pins till the block(s)were on the floor. It was her ironing board. She's in furbaby heaven now, what I would give to have her back.
I guess you have to pick and choose your battles with kids and cats.

Spray with water is one option.

I recently watched a video where they put a sticky pad on the surface and when the cat jumped on it she did not like the feel of the sticky on her paws.

Another option would be to put something slick on the board that slides with the cat (preferrably off the board).

As long as you train the cat I would keep the iron off the board.

I think I will try the water bottle method on her.

When you are not using the board place marbles in a tin pan on the board. When they jump up it should make enough noise to scare them off. Once they are scared of it they won't bother it again.

My cat Tia used to take naps on my ironing board, but since I've been using the steam feature anytime I'm ironing she runs from the room.
A water bottle will do the trick on a cat!!
Sorry about your burn!

well keep her out of the room somehow. my three aren't allowed in my sewing room. had a time with my previous cat when he ate a tiny, tiny bit of poly stuffing. barium x-rays and enema!! not fun.

Mine doesn't like the sound the board makes when I open it and he doesn't like the sound of the iron ejecting steam - too much like a hiss, I guess. Chase him away when he even looks at the board, or gets anywhere near it! He will leave it alone, at least while you are around. I'm sorry about your arm. Take care!

OUCH! Get a spray bottle. That's what I do. Mine fell off too but luckily not towards me! So sorry you got a nasty burn. Put some aloe on it.

I have 2 cats. Black and white. The white one is long haired. She loves the ironing board. Get a water gun. Took to sprays. She doesn't love it anymore!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lots of wonderful tips here. I need to try some. My cats love the ironing board.

Maybe keep a spray bottle of water handy, and if she does it again -- ZAP!! Right in the puss!! She just might get the message to keep off your board. :lol: Either that or teach her how to iron!! :-D

So sorry about your burn. My friend has burned herself with her iron twice in the past few months! It sure has been painful for her. Hope you heal quickly!! :wink:

Cats love to be up off the ground so is there another warm place up fairly high that she can go to? I usually put something on mine so he can not sit up there as he is way too big, you can see from my Avatar what size he is and when he jumps off the whole thing gets thrown sideways! It only took a couple of nasty accidents and I learned the hard way! I put up a couple of emply card board boxes which have stopped him. Other than that I would have to put him out and then he claws at the Cedar doors with his big claws and rips up the wood trying to get in. I have an old chair which he likes and I have his cushions on it and a snuggly cover, all hidden behind my painting stand, he seems to be happy when he thinks we can't see him!

Gal

a bottle of water with very fine spritz. usually one squirt is all they want !

My sweet Bella (my avatar) is always at my side/front/back, when I'm sewing. She's gotten on the ironing board once and it fell over and things, including her went tumbling. Ever since that, she's not gotten on it.

Ouch!

I don't try to keep Her Highness off anything. I recently got the Scotch Fur Fighter Hair Remover. I love it! I keep it close by and run it over the big board before I use it. I am so cheap that I take her "flea comb" the one with the very fine teeth & comb the pad after using it. It gets the picked up hair off and cleans the pad right up. None of this use once, throw away. I'll use it over & over until it won't pick up the hair anymore - then I'll change it. Oh, she's 16 years old and a black Persian with 6 mile long fur!!!

Hope your pain isn't too much to deal with.

My cat likes playing with the dangling iron cord. He's never jumped on the iron board, but I chase him away from the cord simply because I don't want the iron to hit him or the little dogs in the head. Once he's gone, he finds the Lhasa puppy to harass and doesn't come back. It's a short term thing, hence repeat the next day.

try aluminum foil, just leave a sheet on the ironing board. sounds weird I know but it worked for me.

Lay some scrap bubble wrap on the ironing board when not in use, and cat will only jump up there one more time.

I used the spray bottle technique, only took one squirt. I have a special bed for her in the sewing room that she seems to know is a safe place and that is where she stays. The other kitties don't bother to come into the room any more, guess the word of the "squirt bottle" made it's rounds. Good luck!

I used to have this problem, but not any more... Zipster the helper got a bit close, when I wasn't looking.. and singed off some whiskers... He learned his leason!!( they have grown back) Thank goodness.. I made him his own fleece bed in front of the heater... he seem happy there..
He tried taking up chasing the needle, but luckily he grew bored while I was positioning fabric/and lining it up....

Spray bottle or a good shout NO and hand clapping keeps my lot in order. We have rules, no cats on tables, kitchen benches, ironing boards or other dangerous/food prep areas. Cats are clever and usually get with the programme pretty quickly.

Hope your burn gets better soon.

I keep a nice fluffy down pillow laying on another table in my sewing room that is near my big board ironing station. He seems to be happy there. To keep cat hair off my board when I'm not using it I keep it covered with a towel. That way they can lay on the towel and not get hair everywhere. When it gets covered I can throw it in the wash.

What bugs me is when every time I stand up out of my chair to go press or something when I come back there is a cat in my chair!! grrrrrr. So I just sit on him and then he moves. My female cat likes to keep her distance so she only lays around on stuff when nobody is in the room.

I give up. LOL. I keep a sticky roller handy all the time. Boo is always on the board or sewing table and Mike is always on my dang table right on whatever I'm working on. Sully likes to sit next to me on the floor. Like they say, its their house and we are the hired help. LOL

This is my bigger problem. She is really into helping me quilt or wants to learn to quilt. I can't believe how stubborn she is when it comes to moving off the quilt. I can squirt her, but she comes right back. She isn't interested in any other phase of quilt-making - only the quilting part & doesn't seem to mind the fact that her "bed" moves! She is 16 years old and still full of life.

Mine doesn't like the ironing board, however, just loves to lay close to the sewing machine. I think it is the vibratiion. Sorry about your arm.

I think they are looking for the warm. I would suggest heating a rice bag and covering it with something soft. Then show it to your kitty. As long as it is warm, it will be what they are looking for. A heating pad works great also, covered and I plug it in for about 15 minutes then about every half an hour repeat the process. He is content.
Take care of your arm.

sorry you got burned...i do not even try to keep my cat off the board, it is one of his favorite places to hang out when i'm sewing. i have a (bracket-holder) that attaches to the wall, over my ironing board, it is metal, and made to hold your iron (and cord) i hang my iron on the wall so i do not have to worry about it falling or the cat getting hurt the holder is made for a hot iron, you can have it plugged in and hot, iron is ready to grab at any time but secure on the wall, not on a surface where it can be knocked off.
put some aloe gel on your burn!

I have been lucky there as both of my girls do not get on the ironing board. If they did I would use the spray bottle. Take care of that burn - so sorry that happened.

Me too. My board is in front of a huge picture window which lets them check out the whole back yard. (over an acre) They know they can't get up there when I'm working and if I really don't want the distractions, I put them out and close the door.