The $8 spray bottle that saved me from rage-quitting ironing forever

I was literally ready to throw my iron across the room last Tuesday in Austin. Every shirt came out looking like a wrinkled mess no matter how much steam I used. A random lady at the laundromat told me to fill a cheap spray bottle with half water half vodka and mist the shirt before ironing. I tried it on a linen button down I usually avoid and it worked like magic in under 2 minutes. No more creases and no more hard water stains from the iron. Has anyone else tried this or got another weird hack that actually works better?

2 comments

2 Comments

mary_schmidt23d ago

That "random lady at the laundromat" line got me because I had the exact same thing happen to me with a stranger and the vodka trick. I use vodka in a spray bottle for my silk blouses and it's honestly life changing. The alcohol helps the wrinkles fall out fast and it dries way quicker than water alone. I also add like 5 drops of lavender oil to make my clothes smell nice. Only downside is you have to use cheap vodka or you're basically wasting money on fancy booze for your shirts.

the_logan23d ago

Ha, yeah I saw a reddit thread about that vodka trick a while back. Someone was saying you can use it to freshen up clothes that aren't dirty but need a quick refresh, like after a night out. I tried it with a cheap bottle of Smirnoff and it actually works okay, but I just use plain water for most stuff since I'm cheap. @mary_schmidt I bet the lavender oil makes it smell way better than my clothes smelling like a dive bar. I heard you can also use it to kill bacteria in gym clothes, but that seems like a lot of effort when a regular wash does the job. Still, for silk or delicates, I can see the appeal since water alone can leave weird spots sometimes.