The last time I ironed anything was all the way back in 2001 because, quite simply, I hate doing it. Even then, I only ironed my school uniform button-down shirts because the principal would shout at us. The moment I went off to college I never so much as plugged in an iron again, and I haven’t missed it at all.
Except, in recent weeks, my eight-year-old daughter has asked about getting the wrinkles out of some of the clothes she wears to school. For her, and only for her, I went on a hunt for an alternative way to get rid of the wrinkles from clothes, without having to miserably spend hours every week ironing a big pile.
That’s when I spotted the compact Conair clothes steamer on offer and Amazon shoppers going nuts for it, as it drops wrinkles in a matter of seconds with wizard-level ease. It’s a great time-saving laundry trick and I’m happy to eat my hat that getting unwanted creases out of clothing is a chore consigned to the history books.
Many millions of years ago, when I had a part-time job at a design company, they had a warehouse full of clothing samples, and I was often tasked with steaming the creases out of rails of garments for commercial presentations.
They had a plug-in and rather enormous industrial clothes steamer, which was heavy and awkward to move around, but boy did it do the job – and quick!
That's why this clothes steamer actually caught my eye, as it's compact, lightweight, and has rave reviews from thrilled Amazon shoppers.
Verified buyer 'Sassy in Suburbia' (I swear that's not me), gave it five stars, adding, 'The BEST Steamer We’ve Tried — Finally! We’ve gone through so many highly recommended steamers, and this one blows them all away. It heats up fast, is super easy to use, and actually works, no spitting water.
'Compact, powerful, and perfect for quick touch-ups or full outfits. Total game changer for busy mornings and travel. Highly recommend!'
That's music to my ears. I especially like that the Conair steamer has been designed to work on a variety of fabrics, including cotton, linen, polyester, silk, and wool, without damaging them. This is very helpful as wool and silk often don't cope well with heat; for example, you shouldn't put silk in the dryer.
Just keep in mind that heavier fabrics, such as denim, may require a bit more time and effort to fully smooth wrinkles.
I'm going to stick my cleaning playlist on and steam my way through my daughter's closet. Problem solved!
What to shop
If you have a little more space, this standing clothes steamer offers added features with powerful steam functionality that can rapidly heat up in 20 seconds.
Costing almost half as much as the Conair Turbo ExtremeSteam, this smaller alternative can still steam clothes for up to 15 minutes and gets 4.5/5 average reviews from shoppers. More than 20,000 were bought in the last month alone.
The G10 Steamer is compact enough to fit in travel bags and heats up in just 18 seconds. It's Amazon's Choice, meaning it's rarely returned, highly rated by shoppers, and usually in stock.
Reduce the risk of wrinkles when packing away clothes in the long term by folding neatly and storing them in these handy bins with detachable dividers and clear viewing windows to easily find what you're looking for later.
Stackable containers made from sustainable paulownia wood are perfect for storing laundry accessories, including your new steamer when not in use.
Perfect for small spaces, this foldable drying rack simply hangs onto a door and weighs just over half a pound, and will help keep creases to a minimum.
Not convinced? Try these alternative and low-effort ways to steam your clothes without a steamer.
