A New Iron! It's Not Just For Women Anymore....

Pumping Iron, Nine Iron, Forging Iron, Iron's in the Fire...  All Expressions of Masculinity.  But add an -ING to the word Iron, and things suddenly get more "feminine."  Well I'm here to Break that Stereotype by announcing my latest Tool of Testosterone!  My New Iron!  

The Old Toastmaster lasted 11 years and began "toasting" the felt even at the lowest setting.  I think there was a short somewhere in there, because lately, when I plugged it in, the little light would not go on unless I jiggled the cord.  I could have saved it and repurposed it for making actual Toast from bread or  searing meat in the Frying pan, (A totally acceptable, normal, MASCULINE thing to do...) but decided to just pitch it and beg Cheryl to buy me a new one.

And so she did.   A Sunbeam Steammaster!   She got it for CHEAP!  Because the box was damaged. (another Totally Masculine thing to do!)  Shopping in the Scratch and Dent section makes me love her even more! ( Nothing is sexier than a good Bargain Hunter!)

So how does it work?   Well,  Unlike the Irons of yesteryear,  these new Irons actually plug in the wall and use electricity to generate the heat.   You can even add water to it and adjust the settings for the various materials that you want to use.   In this case.. Wool Felt!  

But does it work?   Yes it does!  Check out the before and after pics of this stubborn felt stocking blank.   Now that is what I call,"Im-PRESS-ive!"  ( Get it?   Press, as in you have your clothes "pressed"... )

And check out the steam!  All I have to do is push a little button near the handle and steam comes out.  I can also adjust the small lever to have a constant stream of steam when I need it.  

Now,  to be fair,  the Toastmaster lasted 11 years with somewhat consistent use during the Stocking season.  It was fairly reliable,  Right up until it began scorching stuff.   It had to be retired because folks don't like having charred burn marks on their Christmas Stockings.

I'm sure some of you out there are wondering why I'm so hip on Ironing Felt.   Well,  I would like to think of it as a Tool of the Trade.   Much like the sewing machines, embroidery machines, and machetes used in making the Stockings. Tools are tools!  And men like tool.   And I'm a MAN!    So obviously,  if given the choice of a chainsaw or an Iron, I would choose Chainsaw.  Unless I was creating Christmas Stockings.  

Other than that,   We just finished 19 stockings.   We did 35 yesterday, ( cyber Monday), but it looks like things are tapering off fast.  Hmmm.. I wonder why?    Cheryl and I are confused on how we are to react to the declining sales.   On one hand,  we are relieved we are not getting swamped again like 2020.   However,  we also want to be able to survive in the future.   So having sales and money would definitely come in handy.   Ah well,  there will always be something to complain about, right? 

Tomorrow, we take Haru to the vet to get the snip.  While there, he will be getting some shots, a bath, a flea treatment, de-wormed, and possibly a snack.  With a little luck, he may become an indoor cat, as he is small and does not have the thick fur coat that Leo has.  Hopefully,  I will have pictures of the little scruff to post for the blog.   So far, the only pic I have is this one with Rocket and him on the bench during the Summer.   One of his redeeming values is he gets along with all of the other cats.  Once he is all fixed up, we shall see how well he adjusts to domestic life.  

Oh!  And since I have new found time to blog today,   Cheryl ran 7 miles.   This is the first time in a while that she was able to get in a full training run.  Lately,  we have been cutting things short because 35 stockings in a single day is a LOT and requires a lot of time. But today,  the weather was nice and the stockings limited.   Might as well run off some of that Anxiety while also training for a future race..  If we can afford it.   If there are any more races.   If the asteroid manages to miss the Earth.  ( See how depression spirals out of control?) 

Hope everyone is having a great day today.   And hopefully the Sun was shining, even if the temps are a little brisk..   Now it is time to answer some questions in the shop and then..  Time to relax.   Thanks for stopping in.