ME TOOO

I bought an ironing surface cloth and just put it on my table next to my machine. If I can work a pile, then press.... I leave my ironing board up in the next room.

I have a cabinet arm that pulls out from my sewing cabinet and I keep a small square ironing board on it and press my seams. I use to use a laptop table as my ironing board.

Peg-TX
Innova 18"

i have a small board and iron on the other side of the table, so i chain sew then get up and iron seams...helps me not get so stiff from sitting......gina

My ironing board is outside my room in a hallway leading up to the 3rd floor. When I quilt in my family room I have a 12 x 12 cutting board with a ironing mat on the other side.

Yes! Press! It makes all your pieces go together much more smoothly. I make room for my padded pressing board from Quilt in a Day and set my iron up each time I sew. I, also, have a swivel chair so that I don't have to get up but can go directly from sewing to pressing. Good luck!

same here

I agree with grammy. I have to get up and move, and I tend to have shoulder problems, so pressing with my arms at table height would just make them ache.

I have a cut and flip board that I have tried using close to my sewing machine. I find it to ackward though, and the iron is to hot being that close to me.
I find it better for me to get up and walk to the ironing board and move around a little. :thumbup:

I press my seams and have my ironing board right next to me.

Ditto!

I bought a portable ironing board that folds. Much better than the large one I have. I love it to death. Has pull-out rack for your iron and it doesn't get hot. This goes anywhere I want without dragging the larger one on having to use someone elses.

I press as I sew.

I to have a full size ironingboard set up behind just to mske me...get up and move.....u sit on it to long u spread it lol

I have a rolling cart that I got at Michaels. It's officially scrapbooking storage, but it has 3 drawers plus room for magazines - vertical storage, and then a drop leaf on the top so I can open it up to about 2'by4'/ It is on wheels, so I just pull it up beside me and have my small pressing surface on that. So it's at my left side at right angles to my sewing machine.
I usually chain piece a dozen or so, and then press. I always press one seam before doing the next step.

I turned a wood tv table into a pressing area it's the right height, sits right beside me and I can fold it up and put it away if I have to.

Thanks for the headsup...all this getting up and down is a pain in my back...LOL

I sew then press, sew then press, sew then press, LOL

I sew in my dining room turned craft room. It is on the first floor. My iron and board are in the master bedroom on the second floor. I have often thought I really need a second iron and small board on the first floor, but have come to realize that I can piece for a while, then trot upstairs and iron. It keeps me moving! With arthritic old bones I believe it is really good for me to have to run up and down the stairs frequently. It might take a bit of extra time, but I think the trade-off of getting my muscles moving routinely while sitting at my machine is worth it.

I think I am doing my body some good, but some might think I am nuts...

Yes, it definitely would be worth setting up a pressing area next to your machine. I press every seam. Pressing the newly sewn sean "sets" your thread into the fabric and creates a cleaner finish when the piece is opened and again pressed.

I created a pressing surface by using some double folded muslin with a small scrap of leftover cottom batting between it and placed it on a small table to the right of my machine (I'm right handed and it just works out better that way for me.) For larger seams as when I'm putting rows together I might work on several seams then take it to my larger ironing board in the utility room. Give me some walking exercise.

Costco sells a small adjustable table that makes a perfect pressing station. The table is a little larger than a TV tray and it is adjustable to 22, 24, and 26 inch heigths. I set the table next to my sewing machine cabinet and just roll over to it when I need to press a seam. The adjustable heighth allows me to iron sitting down. If I need to press long seams I go to my ironing board but this little table is perfect for ironing smaller seams.

I made a 2 foot by 3 foot pressing board that sits next to my machine. I is covered with cotton batting and duck cloth. I LOVE IT! Wish my big ironing board worked as well!

Love that idea.

That is exactly what i use and it is on wheels so i roll it into the corner when i have finished sewing, out of harms way.

My sewing desk is a computer desk that has a slide out tray that my DH made a pressing pad for me. So I sew a chain & slide out board, cut them apart & then press & so on. I do need to stand up & move more but when you're on a roll its hard to remember it.

I chain and then I get up and iron, if I sit too long I tend to get stiff and sore. This makes me get up and move. This works for me.

I'm with you! I get carried away when I start chaining and wind up really stiff. If I break it up, my back and shoulders really appreciate it.

I press my seams as I go. My ironing board is across the room. Getting up and down to press seams is the only exercise I get while in the quilting mode. LOL

I sew a bunch of seams then press. I press every seam but I usually sew assembly line style then press. It gets me up and moving away from the machine. I find less arm and shoulder fatigue this way.

I sew a chain and then get up and press - across the room.. I have cats who sit and watch me sew and I have that fear they will get burned if I have the iron next to me... I sit all day at work so, movement is good... So, going across the room is good for me.

I do a lot of pp, so need to press after each seam is sewn. I have a short plastic stacked drawer cart on wheels to the right of my chair, with a Quilter's Square 'n Press on top of it. It's just the right size for those small pressing jobs. Otherwise, my ironing board with the enlarged table on top is right behind me, about 3' away, when I need a larger press surface.

Yes, in order for the block to stay flat and "know" that I have pressed them correctly before I go to the next step I always press as I go. It keeps me out of trouble later :-D

My board is in the lounge room so I am getting some exercise going back and forwards between the sewing machine and the ironing board.