Hi Jimmy!

I suppose there are lots of methods, but I think the general theory is actually related to the structure of wool. It's been awhile since I've thought about this, but I think I have the following more or less right. I hope someone else will set things straight if I'm wrong-headed!! Here's what I remember. Wool fibers (looked at microscopically) consist of a bunch of overlapping plates (kind of like leaf mail armor). When wool gets hot and wet, the little plates lift up. If you rub wool at this point, all the little plates kind of interlock, and, if you cool the fabric instantly, they all lock together permanently (that's what felting is and why felting works on wool but not cotton or linen). So, changing the shape of wool fabric requires conditions where the plates are opened up, you do something to change the shape (e.g., pressing a crease) without rubbing, and then you cool the fabric quickly to set it.

So, for pressing, this means dampening the wool and heating it up, applying pressure, and cooling it down. Tailors accomplish this by soaking a press cloth (either by spraying it or dipping it into a bowl and wringing it out), laying the damp cloth on the garment, using an iron (doesn't even have to be a steam iron if you use a damp press cloth) for generating the heat and forcing steam into the fabric to dampen it, and then pressing hard with the iron (not ironing back and forth). Tailors also use what's called a clapper, basically a chunk of hard wood about a foot long and 4" wide that is pressed onto the fabric after the iron - this helps force the steam into the fabric and it helps cool the fabric to set the crease. Really helps, actually. You can buy clappers at Joann Fabrics, but any chunk of hard birch or maple would do.

So, with your Sunbeam iron, you can do a fine job. Just haul out the ironing board, get a dead pillow case in some light color, dampen the pillow case, and press away. You can do just as good a job as the cleaners will do!

Cheers,

Barb