Originally Posted by BellaBoo
I always read that a solid hard surface was the best way to iron/press. If the steam or heat goes out the bottom of the board it's not a good ironing surface. The open grid boards are made that way to save on cost and make it lightweight.
It depends on if you are covering an IRONING board (which you use for clothes with buttons or zippers) or a PRESSING board (which you use for quilting)... there is a difference! For ironing, you need a padded surface and for pressing you need one that isn't as padded and is quite firm. I have one ironing board for clothing construction and 3-4 different sized pressing boards to use by my machines or to put on top of the ironing board. If you embroider, you want a padded board that you press the embroidery on (possibly even on top of a towel also) from the wrong side. (makes the stitching stand out more). I hope that helps you understand why different people use different things, according to their needs.