Are you looking for the best way to remove wrinkles from tablecloths? Or maybe how to get wrinkles out of napkins?
I love napkins, tablecloths, and all table linens! But I hate when they’re wrinkled and creased. They just look messy and not as attractive as when they’re wrinkle-free.
There’s something about a crisp, smooth tablecloth. How it looks when it’s brand new. When you just bought it and put it on your table.
Then it gets a little dirty and needs to be cleaned. So you wash it and now it’s wrinkled, and the newness is gone.
Arghh!
When I’m creating a tablescape for Adorn the Table, I need my tablecloth and napkins to be wrinkle-free. (Unless I want has that softly billowy look. Which I love with casual linen.)
I have seen many people share the ways they remove wrinkles from tablecloths or napkins, and I decided to give each one a try.
To put each one to the test and to share the results with you.
Honestly, I was a little surprised by the results of some of the ways to get wrinkles out of tablecloths.
*Note: some of the methods I tested to remove wrinkles in tablecloths and napkins required ironing, and some didn’t.
I share all of them with you.
Best Ways to Remove Wrinkles from Tablecloths and Napkins
*Note: I used napkins to test each of the ways to get rid of wrinkles from tablecloths because they are much smaller, easier to work with, and the results would be the same, no matter the size.
I started with a pile of cloth napkins that had been washed and dried in the dryer. Boy were they wrinkled!
How to Get Wrinkles Out of Tablecloths
Test # 1 ~ Use a spray bottle filled with water to remove tablecloth wrinkles
This first way to remove wrinkles from a tablecloth or napkins is one that I use regularly.
You fill a spray bottle with water. Then you put your tablecloth on your table. Take the spray bottle and lightly spray where ever your tablecloth is wrinkled.
Finally, smooth out the wrinkles by gently smoothing out your tablecloth with your hands and pulling it tight in opposite directions. Depending on the size of your tablecloth, it helps to have a second set of hands.
As you can see, this way of removing wrinkles works pretty well, but not 100%.
*I find this method of removing wrinkles from tablecloths is great for a last-minute, non-ironing option. Most of the wrinkles disappear. The only negative is that your tablecloth won’t look crisp and completely wrinkle-free.
Test #2 ~ Spritz the tablecloth with water and put it in the dryer on high
I had never tried this way of removing wrinkles from a tablecloth. I suspect the concept was that re-wetting the tablecloth and then drying it on high would remove the wrinkles.
However, in my test, this didn’t work to remove the wrinkles. There might be fewer wrinkles, but it’s still wrinkled.
Test #3 ~ Remove napkins from dryer when hot & finger press
Since I was starting with napkins that had already been dried, I needed to rewet them for this test. Which I did.
I then place the wet napkin in the dryer, removed it when it was still hot, and “pressed” the napkin with my fingers to remove the wrinkles.
As you can see, this method of removing wrinkles from a tablecloth didn’t work very well for me.
Test #4 ~ Iron your tablecloth when it’s wet to get rid of wrinkles
Honestly, when I was researching ways to get wrinkles out of a tablecloth, I had never heard of this way.
I didn’t grow up always ironing tablecloths, or for that matter, ironing clothes. I think I might own one shirt that should be ironed, and my husband’s dress shirts are wrinkle-free. So, I almost never iron.
(If a tablecloth has creases that need to be removed, I will iron it. But that’s AFTER it’s been washed, dried, and put away.)
So this idea threw me a little.
Since my napkin was already washed, I completely rewet it and wrung it out. Then I ironed it, making sure that the steam setting was off, and no water was in the iron.
And can I tell you…the results were AWESOME!
Seriously ~ no wrinkles ~ not a one!!
And the napkin was SO crisp and fresh-looking. Dang – my mind was blown!
This method was a total winner!!
Test #5 ~ Iron the tablecloth after it’s dried
This method of ironing my tablecloth when it’s dry is one that I was most familiar with. It made the most sense to me…you wash and dry your tablecloths (or napkins), and then iron them.
You can either iron them using the steam setting, with the spray setting or with a separate spray bottle.
As you can see, it works okay. Not great like in #4 when the tablecloth is still wet. But it does the job.
Test #6 ~ Put your napkins in the fridge or freezer when they’re wet to remove wrinkles
Seriously! One of the suggestions I found was that you should put your tablecloth (or napkins) in the fridge or freezer when they are wet, so you can iron them later.
My mind was like ~ WHAT! You suggest I freeze my table linens. That’s hysterical. All I could picture was my husband opening the freezer and seeing the frozen fabric. He would think I had completely lost my mind.
I understood the premise: to keep the tablecloth moist until you have time to iron it. Not to let it dry.
So, I tried it.
I told you I was going to test all of the methods I found.
I froze a wet napkin in a bag overnight. Then I took it out to iron.
It had frozen together, so I couldn’t iron it right away. I had to wait for it to thaw.
After the napkin thawed out, I was able to iron it. And you know what – fantastic!
But I expected it would work just like #4 above when I ironed the wet napkin (as if it hadn’t gone in the dryer).
The only issue was needing to wait for it to thaw. That was a bit of a pain in the patooty. (Note: freezing works, just need to plan accordingly for thaw time.)
*I probably will never use this method, as I don’t have enough space in my fridge or freezer for a tablecloth. Haha!
Test #7 ~ Use steam to get rid of wrinkles in tablecloths
When I was researching ways to get wrinkles out of tablecloths, one recommendation was to hang them in a bathroom and run a hot shower so the steam would loosen the wrinkles.
Honestly, I didn’t try hanging it in a bathroom. I have tried that method with clothes many times, and it never works, so I felt confident, it wouldn’t work on a tablecloth either.
I have a small hand-held steamer, and frankly, I’ve never been a fan of the results. I know others prefer steaming over ironing, but I just can’t seem to get it to work well.
But using a steamer is different than hanging it in a bathroom, so I did try steaming a napkin.
The hand-held steamer did lessen the wrinkles, but they are still noticeable.
These 7 different ways to get wrinkles out of tablecloths have varying degrees of success.
Based on my tests…
If you have no desire to iron, and avoid it like the plague, then I would suggest using the first method with the spray bottle to remove wrinkles without ironing.
However, if you like to iron, or are open to it, then method #4 is by far the best way to get wrinkles out of tablecloths.
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Ironing is what I’ve always used but I love the suggested methods. I would definitely give the spray bottle one a try. Thank you for sharing 🙂
Yes, the spray bottle method works great!
I have tried many ways to get the wrinkles out of our table drops. The only way this works is after you dry it in the dryer, (only dry one at a time, since they are so big, with a couple of dryer sheets) after its dry put on 8ft table, right side up, start folding with the seams spray with starch heavy then iron, fold the other side over that spray heavy with starch and always use steam on your iron. Then fold it again then take one end and bring it to the other side and hang it on a hanger. Ive been ironing these for years, tried every way possible and this is the thing that works.
It sounds like you’ve found a great way that really works for you. Thank you for sharing.
I am 54 years old and when I was growing up my mom taught me all sorts of things like how sew and clean and cook and also how to wash and dry clothes and iron them. She ironed my dad‘s shirts and hankerchiefs. So she taught me because I wanted to earn money doing them.
We used method #4, ironing them while still damp. Especially for the cotton handkerchiefs it worked amazingly. My mother had a lot of ironing to do so she would often put them in the freezer (method #6) to get to them another day. Of course we did not have Ziploc bags back then so we would just use a plastic bread bag. With my dad‘s shirts, she would nicely roll them up and that way when you took them out they were easier to prep for ironing.