Golf is a game which is immensely enjoyable for a whole number of reasons. In November 2021, I got down to single figures handicap for the first time playing off 9 at my home club Slinfold Golf Club in West Sussex. Key specs – Capacity: 1.2L; Dimensions: 28.8(H) x 22(W) x 39.3(D) cm; Weight: 5kg; Cable length: 0.7m; Wattage: 2600W; Steam output: 100gpm; Features: Anytime refilling, auto shut off, double anti-scale system

Steam generators work in the same way as bog standard irons, only they’re a lot more powerful and therefore faster, easier and more efficient for ironing large amounts of laundry.Unlike a standard iron, a steam generator is comprised of a separate unit containing a water reservoir, boiler and pump that connects to a lightweight iron via a length of insulated rubber hosing.Be very very careful about who you bring into your business, how you do it and why you have decided to do it. Be very firm about what you want from investors, how much you are prepared to give away in equity, and who will be running the business after the investment. The most distinctive feature of this novel iron is its appearance. A vintage-style riff on 1950’s domestic gadgetry, it’s both faintly ridiculous and, to my eyes at least, rather likeable. As well as rose gold, it comes in grey and baby blue. But is it a case of style over substance?

The front end is topped off with two large and slightly cheap feeling triangular sliders that can be lifted about an inch higher than their pop-up position so it’s easier to retrieve small items like buns and small pita breads without burning the fingers. Sadly, it doesn’t feature a lift-and-peek function. Picture the scene… You’re about to go to a wedding and you have your favourite shirt – possibly your only shirt – ready on the ironing board. You have just minutes to spare, so you turn on your steam iron, place it on the shirt, pull the steam trigger and – holy mother of pearl – a spurt of limescale splatters itself all over the front. We’ve all been there. Well, the clever bods at Tefal appear to have solved this ridiculous peculiarity by fitting a MicroScale filter to this classy iron that removes 100% of any scale in the steam chamber before it reaches the soleplate. We like that, a lot. However, if you regularly deal with a lot of laundry, a steam generator will certainly make life much easier. Obviously, if you only iron shirts for weddings and funerals, they could be slight overkill, in which case, a bog-standard steam iron is the device for you. How we test irons There may be some water residue in the tank. This is due to each Funky Iron being rigorously tested before leaving the factory. Product ImageryKey specs – Capacity: 0.3L; Dimensions: 15.8(H) x 12(W) x 31.1(D) cm; Weight: 2.3kg; Cable length: 3m; Wattage: 2800W; Steam output: 150gpm; Features: iTemp, MotorSteam, AntiShine However, steam generators do have a number of disadvantages. They’re more expensive than irons, they take up to three minutes to warm up, and their base units are quite heavy and bulky and ideally need to be used on a steam generator-specific ironing board (Brabantia produces an excellent range of sturdy models). They also tend to make a buzzing noise while the steam is being pumped from the main unit to the iron. Hold the iron up and press the steam shot button to refresh and un-crease hanging garments and curtains.

Most irons also offer a simple spray of water at the press of a button, another useful tool for creases but we prefer steam for most fabrics. If you have a habit of accidentally ironing creases into your clothes (full disclosure: the author of this article does), this little iron could be your saviour. Light, small and comfy to grip, it’s exceptionally easy to manoeuvre. Plus, its small footprint minimises the effect of any mistakes you make. In truth, this is probably the Azur’s most distinctive feature. If you’re worried you’ll never get round to cleaning and caring for your iron, it could well be the best one for you. I have been an entrepreneur for the last 21 years. Before that, I worked for Wilson Sporting Goods, SAP and Compaq. Most of that time was in Munich, Germany where I lived on and off for nearly 10 years. Once I broke out to being my own person and starting new businesses, I fell in love with the challenge. Can you start a business from a blank piece of paper and make it successful?

In essence, this investment over 5 years has allowed us to bring our three core products to market: the Funky Iron (December 2018) and the Funky Kettle and Funky Toaster (January 2021). All three products required significant investment in the bespoke tooling and intellectual property. Prym’s mini steam iron is sold as a craft or travel iron, and we agree that it is superbly well suited to those purposes. If you only tend to iron small quantities of clothes at once, you might also consider it as your go-to for day-to-day ironing. It comes with a drawstring pouch, too. The lightweight Fridja takes about 45 seconds to warm up and is capable of providing up to 14 minutes of continuous steaming. The whole system is comprised of a hand unit, a 260ml water tank, a flat plastic collar stiffener, a collapsible clothes hanger, a soft fabric guard for delicates and a nice velvet pouch to put it all in. In a stroke of minor genius, it also comes with a space-saving adaptor that allows you to use any standard plastic drinks bottle instead of the main water tank.

As is the case with the majority of Philips steam generators and irons, this model also comes with OptimalTemp technology which uses just one temperature setting for all types of fabric, whether it’s heavy denim or fine silk. The system is so perfectly dialled that you can safely leave the iron unit face down on the ironing board without having to use the main unit’s cradle. Needless to say, the iron will automatically shut down after a period of inactivity. I like that it comes with a jug for pouring water in without spillage. A big red light flashes slowly to let you know it’s heating up, which takes a couple of seconds. In recent decades, steam generator irons have emerged as a strong competitor to the traditional steam iron. These incorporate a separate steam-generator tank, which will typically be able to deliver a higher volume of steam to the soleplate than a traditional in-built reservoir could. Steam generator irons tend to have higher ironing power compared to a conventional iron – the only real downside is that they take up a lot more room. Things to consider Yet Joe and Sadie were always unimpressed with many of the handheld electric steam irons and steam generators they had owned over the years, which would either leak water everywhere or simply fail too early. It was during a trip to the local hardware store to buy a new ironing board that Sadie mentioned something about ironing board covers being garish but not funky, and Joe responded, “I tell you what aren’t funky … irons!”

Things to consider

Like the Philips Azur Elite (below), this model offers an intelligent mode – “i-Temp” – that promises to administer the ideal amount of steam and heat based on what you’re ironing. This helped us blast through our laundry at rapid speed, without having to think too much about settings. We get it, sometimes you don't want to lose the cord and plug on your iron because you just don't want to sacrifice any power or steaming ability. That's where the Tower 3100 Rose Gold Ultreaspeed Steam Iron really impressed us during testing. At Ideal Home we know how important it is to have hands-on experience with products before we recommend them to you, in line with our testing protocol. That's why we've tested every iron in this round-up extensively at our test facility before coming to the conclusion in this ranking. That included testing them on shirts, linen, and bedsheets to test their credentials. Water tank capacity: To avoid adding extra weight, look for a small tank (although not so small that you constantly have to refill it).