Hey there. If you're following me on Instagram (username: @gigis_thimble) you may remember I got a new iron about a month ago and was excited to try it out. Now that I've been using it for a while I thought I'd share my thoughts with you!
So first off, it's cute right? Us quilters like cute stuff...so why aren't all irons cute? The Oliso irons come in several fun colors and range in price from $99-$170.
Also, it's a "Smart Iron" (which had me all googly eyed, I'm not gonna lie). It's got a patented "Itouch Technology". Let me tell you how that works... So, you're always supposed to keep the iron in the down (flat) position - with the soleplate against the ironing board. (That took some getting use to. I'm so used to other kinds of irons that you have to automatically put in the upright position or you're going to scorch the heck out of your fabric! It's pretty nice though 'cause it does save time!) When you take your hands off the handle, the scorchgaurds lower -
which lifts the iron about 1/2" off the ironing board. So it hovers! It's pretty cool. When you put your hand around the handle there's a sensor that will make the scorchguards raise and then the iron lowers down and it's ready to use.
A couple other nice features I've discovered in the last few weeks... first, the extra long cord has come in handy a few times! I'm working on a new quilt pattern for Fall Market right now and pulled my ironing board over to my sewing table so I don't have to keep getting up and down to press my blocks (anything to save time, right?) The Oliso's cord is a good 4' longer than my Rowenta cord. So big thumbs up there! And second, it stays on for 30 minutes before automatically shutting off. Isn't it annoying when you're in the middle of a project and the automatic shut-off shuts off every 5 minutes!?! I haven't had that problem with the Oliso and when it does shut off you simply have to touch the handle!
So the only "con" about the Oliso that I've found so far, is this:
When pressing a block with several seams, the scorchguards got caught on some of the seams or the edge of the block and kind of pushed them in the wrong direction (causing me more work because I had to then press new wrinkles out). I wanted to compare my old Rowenta with my new Oliso to see if the Rowenta also got caught up on the seams. Nope, it was definitely a smoother ride.
So I can see that the scorchguards are (on one hand) a really nice feature and on the other hand, a bit of a problem. I will keep trying to see if I can get used to them when pressing my block. Maybe I will get better as I get more practice.
Aside from that I like the Oliso a lot.
Do you have an Oliso and if so, what do you think about it?
I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
Happy quilting!
~ Amber
