How to make arrows on trousers: description, preparation, recommendations, instructions

For a long period of time, the main trend has been occupied by creases on trousers. They have forever become part of the classic costume. Correctly making such curves so that they harmoniously and ideally complement the entire image can only be done by following a few tips.

The history of the arrows

There are many versions that tell different stories about the origin of arrows on trousers. One such story comes from the 19th century. Then tailoring in factories began to develop with all its might, collecting large quantities of these clothes. To send finished items to other countries and cities, it was customary to fold them very tightly together. After unpacking, customers discovered an item that had been left in such a state for so long that it had wrinkles.

One of the authors of the appearance of the arrows is the Duke of Windsor, who was caught in a downpour while traveling to a social event. His trousers were completely wet and lost their shape. Seeing a peasant woman, he asked her to iron them. The girl was in such a hurry that she folded the crotch and side seams, resulting in an interesting fold. The Duke liked it so much that he introduced it into fashion.

Which of these stories is more truthful is still unknown, however, fashionistas liked such folds so much that they began to do it intentionally. First, this fashion affected men's clothing and only then women's clothing. In modern times, such a thing is an inseparable element for traditional sets.

How to fix the arrows?

To ensure that your arrows are even and last a long time, you can use a few more tricks. So, if you want such elements of trousers to be fixed better, you need to add a little vinegar or ammonia to the spray water. They will allow you to fix the fabric in the desired position.

You can also use soap to fix the arrows more if you already know how to do them correctly. You will just need to rub it on the inside of the trousers along the crease line and smooth this area after this step.

Preparing things

Smooth, symmetrical curves create the effect of sophistication and style on any person. However, in order not to ruin your trousers, you should adhere to several basic rules.

Accuracy

Creating neat curves on clothes should begin with washing. This should be done so that during the ironing process the existing dirt does not become completely ingrained into the fabric, because after that it will no longer be possible to wash it off. Therefore, if there are traces of sweat, stains, or various stains on your trousers, you should not be lazy about loading the washing machine.

Important! Only clean clothes can be exposed to high temperatures.

Iron mode and material composition

Before you start ironing, you should study all the properties of the item. After all, only the specified temperature is suitable for various fabrics. For example, wool will require 100-120 degrees, for nylon, knitwear and silk 60-80, pure cotton, drape, tweed 140-170, and for denim 150-200. Without knowing such features, there is a big risk of completely ruining the thing. Therefore, to avoid doubts, you should carefully study all the labels on things, where all the necessary information about proper washing and ironing is usually indicated.

Ironer

Such a complex word means just a piece of ordinary fabric through which clothes are ironed. This helps the item remain without iron marks. One of the main conditions for its use is a perfectly clean iron. Cotton or white linen are usually used, but for woolen items, wool is best. It is quite easy to use: the iron is placed on the fabric and blotted with a spray bottle, brush or wet sponge, and then ironed until completely dry. If there is no special fabric for this, then ordinary gauze or white material that does not leave marks will do.

Correct surface

To get the perfect result, of course, it is best to use a specially designed ironing board. However, if there is none, then any equal surface can do. A floor pre-covered with a towel or blanket is ideal.

Spray

Nowadays, almost every iron has a steam mode. If it happens that such a function is missing, a regular spray bottle with water can come to the rescue to moisten the material. This should be done to make it easier to iron. A moistened cloth will allow you to smooth out all the creases and folds much faster. And the risk of burning the fabric will be much less.

Interesting! Nowadays, a large number of devices have been created that can simplify the life of any housewife. This includes a steamer, which is able to more carefully and quickly deal with all hard-to-reach places.

Necessary equipment and additional devices

The first step is to organize a place to work. You can iron trousers with arrows either on a special board or on another flat surface. A table, a hard bed and a floor, which will first need to be covered with thick fabric (blanket, bedspread), are suitable for this.

The most important tool when ironing trousers is the iron. It is better if it has a steaming function and a temperature switch. They will need to be adjusted for different types of fabric. You can use modern technology - a steamer or steam generator.

Additional equipment needs to be prepared. It is recommended to iron trousers from the inside out first or using a special iron to avoid the formation of shine and scorch marks. The latter can be replaced with gauze or a piece of thin fabric. To moisturize completely dry clothes and improve ironing in the absence of a steaming mode, a spray bottle is needed. A towel or flat pad helps iron in hard-to-reach places. It is convenient to place a sheet of cardboard under the seams and pockets, so there will be no marks left on the outside.

You should not put newspaper under your trousers; printing may leave an imprint on the product. Additionally, it is recommended to use stationery clips and tailor’s pins to iron straight arrows, securing them in the right places.

Ironing board or other flat surface

Iron with steam function

Steam generator

Ironer

Ways to iron trousers

After all the preparation, you can start ironing. At the same time, you should not immediately start forming arrows. To begin with, the clothes should be ironed from the inside out, and then from the front.

From the inside out

To iron trousers from the wrong side, you need to turn them inside out and iron them completely, starting from the top. In this case, a sheet of paper without inscriptions should be placed under the pockets, which will prevent the appearance of unsightly creases. The side seams should also be given attention. To iron the top of your trousers, place them on the side of the ironing board.

From the front side

After the work is done, the item will need to be turned inside out again. To create arrows, work should be done in 3 stages:

The fabric will need to be laid so that the inside and outside seams are held together exactly. For any deviation of the arrow, the bend will be made incorrectly.
Using damp gauze, you can begin to move the iron over the entire pant leg. In this case, movements should be careful and unhurried. You shouldn’t constantly move the device along the created arrow; it would be better to tear the iron off your trousers and apply it again. This will reduce the risk of material shifting.

How to iron trousers: ironing rules

Before you begin to directly draw the arrows, you need to perform several important processes that contribute to the successful completion of the entire procedure.

Ironing trousers requires compliance with certain rules.

Before you start ironing your pants, you need to turn them inside out. This way you will be able to avoid the characteristic gloss that appears on the surface of the fabric after contact with an iron that is too hot. Carefully iron the lining (if there is one), codpiece and waistband. Take the time to go along the wide back seam.
After processing the wrong side, turn them over to the front. It is important to know how to fold pants correctly. Place on the surface and smooth with your hands. It is necessary to check whether the two internal side seams match, which must be precisely placed on top of each other.
The top part of the pants is the most difficult to iron, as this area contains a large number of back seams. With normal ironing, all the internal “parts” of the legs will appear, which will create a not very aesthetic appearance. To prevent this from happening, place a small pad inside and iron the fabric itself over damp gauze.
Now you can work on the trouser legs themselves. This is a very important step in the matter. Iron the outer and inner parts, but do not touch the arrows. And do this with both legs.
After smoothing the trouser legs, you need to fold them in halves together, align the edges and steam a little.

Now all that remains is to achieve the appearance of correct and symmetrical arrows.

Traditional methods

In order to make creating creases on trousers much easier, several useful tricks were invented:

The item, turned inside out, is placed on the ironing board. Then, using a bar of soap, draw a line where the folds will be in the future. Then, on the front side, using a wet comb, insert it between the teeth and draw along the drawn line with slight pressure.
You can also simply lightly point a piece of soap over the place where the arrows will be, and then smooth it through wet gauze on the front side.

Reviews from those who have ever made creases on their trousers

Every housewife has her own secrets for ironing trousers with creases, and some of them are happy to share them on online forums. Below are the most interesting and useful of them.

Here, housewife Veronica from Rostov-on-Don shared with other forum participants how she makes arrows:

And Muscovite Elena advises first ironing the creases in the usual way on an ironing board, and then steaming the trousers while hanging:

An anonymous guest on the Woman.ru forum advises not to bother at all and to stroke the old arrows:

I, as the author of this article, also want to share my experience of ironing classic men's trousers. To do this, I always use gauze folded several times. My iron is good, with a ceramic sole, and even has a vertical steam supply. But still, I always prefer to use a damp iron - the result is much better. Sometimes I use a simple cotton fabric or a thin terry towel. I wet the iron in a weak vinegar solution. Thanks to it, the arrows are preserved for a long time and even withstand repeated squats and standing up from a chair during the working day. I iron the trouser legs one at a time, since making arrows on both at the same time is aerobatics for me. So, I make a front crease, moving from the fold in the waistband to the bottom edge. I iron the entire trouser leg, not reaching the place where the back arrow should be. Then I shake it well and start ironing the second arrow. I do the same thing, only I move from the bottom up: I iron to the place where I can still iron the arrow. I usually have the end of the back dart in the same place where the back pocket begins. Then I turn the same pant leg over to the other side and iron it again. I leave the trousers alone for about 20 minutes and then start ironing the second half. At the end, I fold both trouser legs together and iron them again on both sides. The arrows turn out even and neat.

How to remove uneven arrows

Even experienced housewives can make mistakes, so if you suddenly notice upon closer examination that the arrow is uneven, it can be corrected in several ways:

the first thing you need to do is simply iron the resulting ones from the wrong side;
If regular ironing does not help, then you can use regular 9% table vinegar to eliminate a crooked crease. Mix a liter of water with two tablespoons and soak gauze in the solution. Then put it on your trousers, which you have previously turned inside out, and steam them. After this, you can start creating beautiful arrows again;
If any stains appear after ironing, laundry soap will help get rid of them. They will need to soap all problem areas and soak for 15 minutes. After that, wash again, rinse and dry in the sun.

Pants with arrows: what you need to do to make the arrows last longer

It happens that you spend a lot of time making your pants look presentable, but the result disappears immediately after they are on the owner. If you follow these rules on how to save arrows, you will be able to avoid such problems.

The gauze through which you iron must be moistened in a special mixture of vinegar and water (1 tablespoon per 1 liter of water, respectively). Don't be afraid, the scent of the essence will not be noticeable.
Vinegar is easily replaced with a few drops of ammonia. The effect will be the same.
Before ironing, you can run a piece of laundry soap along the folds, but only from the wrong side. And then all that remains is to iron the front one.
You should not put on your trousers immediately after completing the process, as wet fabric does not hold its shape well.
It is better to leave only the treated wardrobe item on the ironing surface or hang it in the closet. The ideal option is to prepare the item in the evening and put it on in the morning.
Even if the iron is equipped with a powerful steam mode, you still need to iron the item through a gauze cloth. This way you can save the fabric from damage.

Adviсe

There are several tricks and tips on how to make arrows on clothes so that they always look perfect:

Some housewives claim that you can iron trousers through newspaper, but if you do not want to spoil the item with printing ink, then you should not use this method.
If you need to transport ironed trousers, you can carefully roll the item with a roller, then the risk that they will wrinkle will be minimal.
The kinks will turn out much smoother if you start ironing from the knee area.
Men and women involved in business are already so accustomed to polishing their pants that it has become part of their everyday routine. It is important that the effect can last longer after ironing. To do this, you should give things a little time to cool down.
You can remove the gloss after treatment with a solution of water and vinegar.
It is necessary to iron not only the trousers themselves, but also all pockets, fasteners, belt loops, and belts.
Some crafty housewives have come up with an absolutely simple way to create beautiful folds. To do this, fold the fabric in half and connect the instep and side seams. In this form, place it under the mattress and lie down to rest. The next morning you will find perfect arrows.
If it turns out that you don’t have vinegar on hand, you can replace it with ammonia.

Temperature selection

Before picking up an iron, you need to inquire about the ironing conditions of the existing product. Information about this is easy to find on the manufacturer's label attached to the inside of the trousers. Usually the designation takes the form of an iron with certain symbols indicating in what mode this type of fabric can be ironed. The options are as follows:

Iron and three points. In this case, you can set the heating temperature of the device to 200 degrees.
Iron and two points. Such symbols on the label indicate the permissible temperature - up to 150 degrees.
Single point iron. The recommended ironing temperature is low, up to 110 degrees.
An iron with steam output crossed out means that the item can only be ironed without using steam.

If the tag is lost and it remains unclear which temperature mode to choose, you should start with the minimum heating intensity of the iron, and then gradually increase the temperature. It is necessary to ensure that the arrow begins to smooth out without harm to the fabric.