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Ironing Velvet

First of all! Don't! Never iron velvet. It needs to be steamed. Velvet is a piled fabric. Piling add an extra filling is added to the weave of the fabric. Ironing will crush this and cause irreversible damage to the velvet. So if you care about your garment, you're going to have to use steam. I find that most often, if I just remember to keep the velvet items hung up, they stay wrinkle free. If you will be taking a shower before wearing the item, bring it in the bathroom with you. If it's not to wrinkly, the wrinkles will fall right out. Otherwise, as a velvet loving Goth, a steamer would be worth the investment. They aren't expensive at all and they are easy to use. You could also use the steam from an iron, but this is a little more difficult, and you have to make sure not to make contact. By the way, Polyester velvet is easier to damage than the more expensive velvets.

I prefer to hang my clothes and run the steamer up and down. Don't pause any where for too long. They also sell special boards designed for steaming velvet, but I have no experience with that. Apparently, it's the same concept, but it lies flat and you make an ironing motion, but hold the steamer or iron above the fabric an inch or so above the fabric. If you use the hanging method, sometimes it helps to give gentle tugs at the bottom of the garment while you're steaming to loosen the wrinkles faster.

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