I have been using my beloved Bernette ProGlide Plus for over 20 years. What a great iron. Much better than the Rowenta I had prior to that, which was more expensive but used to spit. (I had bought my Rowenta around 1984. Rowentas weren't made in China back then, so that can't be the excuse for its unsatisfactory performance.)
Today, I was working on my coat, pressing open the seam allowance between the lining and the wool outer shell. I had pressed almost half of the long seam when I set the iron down to readjust the seam on the tailoring board. I set it down on the narrow end of the ironing board. Or so I thought. In fact, I missed the board entirely. Oops. It landed on some plastic bags on the tile floor and I had to act quickly to avoid a real mess.
My reliable iron was broken. The sole plate was hanging away from the handle - the plastic anchoring it had split.
What did I do?
I did what any determined sewist would do. I jammed the sole plate back as best I could. It didn't work too well, but I had to finish pressing that seam! I did finish, but the coat got drenched for my trouble - the iron was leaking everywhere.
Harumph.
I got in the car and headed for the nearest brick and mortar that might have an iron that would suffice. Target. They had only one iron, out of many, that lacked auto-shutoff. I bought the $10 Black and Decker and brought it home, filled the reservoir, and fired it up.
It's awful. I had heard that these irons weren't too bad, but I guess I am spoiled. This one leaks. It doesn't get hot enough, and it's so lightweight that it's barely there. Every sewist knows that a heavy iron is an effective iron.
Eventually I want to get a Digital Velocity iron. It's in my wishlist at Amazon, but it's a pricey little number. Are there cheaper, but good, non-gravity-feed irons available that aren't ruined with an auto-shutoff feature?
Please let me know. :)
