While there may be some people out there who enjoy ironing, we’re pretty sure those people are pretty few and far between!

If you’re the type who wants to avoid the ironing as much as possible, there are a few little habits you can weave into your laundry routine to dramatically cut down on ironing. This guide will explain how creases and wrinkles happen, and what you can do to avoid them.

Sort it out!

In our laundry guides, we talk a lot about sorting your clothes not just by colour, but by washing and drying temperature too. If you want to avoid creases and wrinkles, then you’ll need to start sorting your laundry into fabric type and weight too. Washing heavier garments light jeans with lighter items such as t-shirts will lead to the heavier clothes literally crushing the lighter ones. This causes creases, so washing like-with-like will reduce them.

Dry it right

Having sorted your laundry by colour, washing temperature and fabric type means you can probably throw your load straight into the tumble dryer from the washing machine (of course, check your clothes’ care labels to make sure they can indeed be tumble dried!). Again, not having light and heavy fabrics in the drum together means that those lighter items don’t get crushed by the heavier ones.

But you still need to choose the correct drying programme, and perhaps more importantly, the right drying time. Over-drying clothes can really set wrinkles and creases deep in garments, requiring serious steam ironing out. 

If you’re using a timed programme, check the drum towards the end of the cycle and if you’re happy with the dryness level, you can end the programme early. If your tumble dryer has sensors, you can use a programme like the cupboard dry cycle on Beko tumble dryers, that will detect the correct level of dryness and will stop the appliance, preventing creasing.

If your tumble dryer offers fabric specific programs, these will also prevent creases as they set the correct temperature and drying time automatically.

A fold in time…

It’s pretty tempting to just grab your laundry from the dryer and throw them in your laundry basket and then worry about putting them away later. Unfortunately, this is a great way to make sure any wrinkles or creases in your clothes set in more deeply. If you take the time to fold your clothes as you take them out of the dryer, you’ll save yourself hours of ironing time.

When you remove an item of clothing from the tumble dryer, give it a strong snap to throw off any lint and to shake out creases and wrinkles. Hang shirts and blouses on hangers straightaway, and make sure that seems, collars and cuffs and button plackets are all pulled straight. This will help creases and wrinkles fall out naturally.

Storage matters

Cramming your items into a wardrobe while they’re still warm or slightly damp can lead to wrinkling and creasing. So, if they’re on a hanger, give them time to totally dry before hanging them on a rail, or fold them neatly if you’re going to put them on a shelf or in a drawer.

If you’re going to wear an item a few times before you wash it, hang it up so air can circulate around the garment to release creases and dry any moisture.

Emergency crease removal

If you’re in a pinch and need to get rid of creases or wrinkles in your clothing fast, you could try putting the item on a hanger and hanging it in a bathroom while running a hot shower. The steam created will help release creases and wrinkles. If you have access to a tumble dryer, you can throw a damp towel in with your item of clothing and run a programme for about five minutes. Hang the item up immediately after, and you might not have to do any ironing at all. 

So, while these tips might not mean that you can banish the iron forever, they will help significantly to reduce the amount of time you’ll spend hunched over the ironing board.