Every quilter needs some type of pressing surface. Some like to use their ironing boards, while others prefer a more rectangular surface. I used my ironing board for quite some time, until I decided that I needed a better type of pressing surface. So I decided to make one!
I actually have two different pressing surfaces, both of them portable: a large 24" x 48" one that is my main pressing surface and another smaller one that I take with me on retreats and that you've probably seen in my YouTube videos. Both are made the same way.
To make your own pressing surface, you'll need:
MDF (medium-density fibreboard) for the base, cut to the size you want your pressing surface to be
100% cotton batting, cut about 2" - 3" larger on all sides than the MDF
100% cotton fabric to cover the top of your pressing surface, cut about 2" - 3" larger on all sides than the MDF (I love Ikea fabric for this as it is 100% cotton and quite thick)
Wood glue or staple gun
The process is fairly easy to do and my favourite part of this type of pressing surface is that if (when!) the top gets stained, you can take the fabric and batting off the MDF and recover it.
To make the pressing surface, just lay you batting out and centre the MDF on top of it. Fold in the sides of the batting and glue or staple them to the MDF on all four sides. Cut off some of the excess batting at the corners and mitre fold the corners in and glue them too.
You probably won't get a perfectly mitered corner, but at least it will look neat
You'll repeat this process with the fabric and once you're done, that's it! Your pressing surface is already to go!
To see how I made a smaller pressing surface, just click on the image below to view a video on my YouTube channel that explains the entire process.
What do you use for a pressing surface: your ironing board or something else? Leave me a comment below to let me know.
Creatively,
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