Mary Ellen’s Best Press Review – What is it and Why I Love it so Much?

When I first started quilting, I didn’t worry too much about what spray starch to use and just went with whatever I had on hand.

It wasn’t until I got a little more serious about it all that I realised that a good spray starch can make all the difference. That’s when I did a bit of research to find which one was the best and  Mary Ellen’s Best Press came up time and time again. Quilters seem to love it.

I love Best Press for a number of reasons. It’s a spray starch alternative that doesn’t leave any residue on your fabric. That’s hugely important for quilters. Mind you, I guess it’s important for anyone ironing anything. No one wants residue on their freshly ironed clothes.

I find it works well on both dark and light fabric and have never had any of that annoying flaking that you can often find with some other brands of starch.

It removes wrinkles easily and it apparently also has a soil guard feature. To be honest, I’m exactly sure what that means really. Does it work in the same way as those fabric protection sprays that you spray onto upholstery fabric to protect it from staining? I assume so but haven’t found much information on it to say otherwise. Let me know in the comments if you more info on this.

I also use it on my clothes as well as my quilt blocks and quilts. I don’t often iron clothes as I hang them up as soon as they come in of the clothes line, so they don’t get wrinkled, but for the odd item that does, I find a few squirts of Best Press and they are wrinkle free in no time. As well as leaving no residue it also doesn’t leave any shine on the fabric.

Apart from the ease of removing wrinkles, it doesn’t attract bugs. This is great news because the last thing you want is some hungry bug making a meal of your beautiful quilt when you store it. I know that a lot of quilters stay clear of spray starch because they think it attracts bugs so it’s nice to know that Best Press is bug resistant.

I love the scent, it’s so crisp and cleans smelling. It actually comes in a number of fragrances,  such as Cherry Blossom,  Caribbean, Lavender, Linen Press, Tea Rose Garden, and for those who don’t like scented sprays or are allergic to different scents, there is also an unscented version.

I have to say that I particularly like the Lavender. I grow lavender and this smells just like when I brush past a Lavender bush and release the heady fragrance into the air.

I tend to spray the fabric before I cut it and then I find that those tiny little triangles that I need to piece together stay perfectly flat and crisp.

It gives body to thinner fabrics and creates a nice crispness which makes it easier when piecing.

I like to keep a large bottle on hand for when my spray bottle runs out but it seems to lasts for ages.

Now one thing I will mention is that the ingredients aren’t listed on the bottle but it is acid free, so if this is something you wish to know, you can contact the company to check.

Where can you buy Mary Ellen’s Best Press Liquid Starch?
 – Amazon have the full range.
– Here in Australia you can order it from Echinda Sewing