I have had an affection for irons and ironing my entire life; here's all the photographic proof you need!😉 I can't even calculate how many irons I have owned, and worn out, in the last six+ decades, there are that many. In the sewing room right now I have my large "workhorse" steam generator iron, a full-sized regular iron that I can carry into other rooms, a portable iron for travel, an old-fashioned dry iron without steam holes for fusing and two, small, Clover irons for hand appliqué work.
In any quilt class, workshop or gathering of quilters the "steam or no steam?" question is always a topic open for discussion. I am a huge steam aficionado; the more the better! I like for the seams in my quilt blocks to lie super-flat; there's no such thing as too much steam for me. My only advice to quilters who can't decide if they are in the "steam" or "no steam" camp is to take precautions to avoid stretching; always "press" (up and down) and not "iron" (push back and forth) and to be extremely careful
not to handle a pressed and steamed block too quickly, let it cool in place on the ironing board!
I knew that my old-trusty Rowenta "Expert" steam generator was on it's last leg, it had been over-heating and was slowly falling apart, I had owned, and loved, it for approximately five years. I adapted and made concessions for its quirks and foibles as I knew that this particular model was no longer being made. I was well aware that our relationship was coming to a close, it was just a matter of time. And then, one fateful day, when I picked it up it literally fell apart in my hand! That was it.

Sadly, I was forced to search for a new model, the day that I had long been dreading was upon me. I knew that I wanted another steam generator but wasn't sure which one. The prices for irons such as these range all over the place; one can literally spend as much as one has! Cost was important factor in my decision, I had a list of requirements and researched for hours. In the meantime I used the Rowenta Power Glide 2 pictured above. It works well, but it just wasn't quite the same. I need steam! steam! steam!

After all of my research and reading as many reviews as I could find, I took a deep breath and settled on the Rowenta "Perfect Steam" model. Clearly, as I learned from the reviews, spending an exorbitant amount guaranteed absolutely nothing. My choice was definitely, what I would consider to be, mid-range in the cost department. It arrived on the doorstep two days later. So far, so good. We are developing a relationship and I am finding new features to love. This model has a removable water tank for filling (yes!) and a nicely designed tapered tip that makes ironing around buttons effortless. Yes, I iron more than quilt blocks!

The day after our recent vacation ended I was back at it, catching up on laundry. I am happily ironing away again with ease. It takes a while to fall in love again, but we're getting there. I receive no compensation from Rowenta, my experiences with their products are mine alone; keep in mind that this isn't a review but, rather, my own personal opinion based on what I like. Speaking of that, I did do some ironing while we were on the cruise ship. I didn't t take my own travel iron along, but used the one in the laundry room that was conveniently located just across the hall from our room. Mr. Goodneedle asked how I liked that iron. My response: "meh". He just smiled. Yeah, I know-- I suppose that I am an iron snob, I can own that. How about you? What do you need in an iron?
Life is Good!