Steamer for Dorm Room

Parent Cafe
1

<p>I’m looking for a clothes steamer for S to take to school in a few weeks. He likes to look nice and wears a lot of cotton shirts, but does not want to iron. I looked at a few steamers this morning, but I have no idea.</p>

<p>Does anyone have any brands to recommend (or not)?</p>

2

<p>My brother swears by the one at Costco. It has a metal clothing rack that you hang your garment from and then use the steamer. He uses it every morning for his long-sleeved cotton shirts. Most of the college living situations we’re familiar with are pretty tight and such a set up would take up a lot of very precious space. I would wait and see whether he might just want to buy and iron and get by with that or whether he really wants and has space for a steamer (you don’t have one and would buy it anyway).</p>

<p>If you do get something from Costco, remember they are great about returns if you don’t want it for whatever reason. Since no one in our home irons much, we just have an iron and ironing board. It is stored in S’s closet, since he irons more than all the rest of us put together. You can iron on a bed and skip the ironing board, as long as you don’t have things that will melt from the heat–plastic, synthetic fabric blankets, etc. or put some towels on top to add extra protection before ironing on the bed.</p>

3

<p>FallGirl, get him some wrinkle-free cotton Nordstrom rack-branded shirts. </p>

4

<p>^ Good idea, but we already have a lot of money invested in shirts from J Crew and Vineyard Vines.</p>

5

<p>How big is his dorm room? A free-standing steamer with a rod would take some space, so it would make sense to get something compact. Maybe one of these?</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/_mobile/product-reviews/appliances/handheld-steamer-reviews/best-handheld-steamers#slide-1”>http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/_mobile/product-reviews/appliances/handheld-steamer-reviews/best-handheld-steamers#slide-1&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Jiffy is a very reputable brand. Their professional grade steamers are used by department stores.</p>

6

<p>This is the one I have. It’s basically a boiling hot pot which surprised me but it works. </p>

<p>I’ve seen them at bed bath and beyond and Meijer if you have one near you. <a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Joy-Mangano-MLS-850-Little-Steamer/dp/B0024W9SUU/ref=sr_1_3?s=appliances&ie=UTF8&qid=1407611015&sr=1-3&keywords=joy+mangano+steamer”>http://www.amazon.com/Joy-Mangano-MLS-850-Little-Steamer/dp/B0024W9SUU/ref=sr_1_3?s=appliances&ie=UTF8&qid=1407611015&sr=1-3&keywords=joy+mangano+steamer&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>I had that Rowena steamer and it didn’t work at all for me. Maybe they’ve improved it since I had one. </p>

<p>What I might do is boil water in a tea kettle and try to see if it will take wrinkles out in a way he would find acceptable. That’s basically what a personal steamer is. I don’t think they take the place of an iron but more like downy wrinkle releaser if that makes sense. </p>

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<p>I bought a cheap Conair one at Target for my daughter’s dance costumes, but now we use it all the time. Best $50 I’ve spent in a long time! We hate ironing and are also fans of the Downy Wrinkle Eraser spray–you can just spray it on slightly wrinkled clothes and run your hand over the fabric, or (better yet) pop the garment in the dryer for a few minutes. For college, I think a steamer would be the best bet but make sure you educate your son on how hot they get!</p>

8

<p>Sally, plain tap water can do the same magic as the expensive Downy. Give it a shot! :)</p>

9

<p>Be sure to check the dorm’s rules - steamers, believe it or not, may not be permitted.</p>

10

<p>I bought my son a fairly inexpensive steamer at BB&B. I forget the brand. He uses it a lot as he doesn’t fold any of his clothes after doing laundry and his a job on campus requires that he frequently needs to wear nice, button down shirts. </p>

11

<p>Those large steamers look great but he will be in a triple and space is an issue.</p>

<p>I checked the school’s website yesterday and they don’t ban steamers so we should be ok. </p>

<p>deb,interesting about the Rowenta model, I see Good Houskeeping likes it, it may have been improved.</p>

<p>Thanks everyone for your responses.</p>

12

<p>Joy Mangano’s My Little Steamer…can be bought at Target, HSN, and Amazon.</p>

<p>My son (and his housemates) uses his everyday. They have to “look good” when they are in the hospital. </p>