Q. To save money on dry cleaning, I’ve started to wash and iron some of our clothes. How can I make them look as good as a professional would?

A. Follow a few simple rules, and no one will ever know you did the ironing yourself. Before you begin, clean the face of your iron with a paste of baking soda and water to prevent any dirt from transferring to your clothes. Then, fill the iron with distilled water so you won’t spray staining minerals all over your blouse. Finally, make sure you choose the right heat setting for your garments (check the labels). Going hotter won’t save time -- it will just scorch your clothes.

Pull your clothes from the dryer while they’re still damp and iron them immediately. This will save you the trouble of ironing out dryer-induced wrinkles and could cut as much as 50 percent off your ironing time. Give delicate fabrics special TLC -- iron them inside out or put a muslin pressing cloth between the garment and the iron. Never iron velvet. Finally, consider buying an inexpensive mini ironing board (also called a sleeve board). It makes ironing sleeves and other nooks and crannies -- which take the most time -- quick and easy.

Jeff Bredenberg is the author of How to Cheat at Cleaning: Time-Slashing Techniques to Cut Corners and Restore Your Sanity.