Miser or saviour?

I would love to own an ironing board and cover like Lisa Stickley's witty and gorgeous one pictured above, but I seem to recall it was something like 150 pounds. Crikeys! You would really have to enjoy ironing. Surely if you can afford something like AU $300 for an ironing board cover, you can afford an ironing lady?

Recently I have had to replace my ironing board. It was 23 years old and was still OK except for some metal bits that would snag me when I put it up and down. As I am always conscious of OH&S in the workplace and home, it had to go. OK, one may say. Twenty three years is a long time, she has got her money's worth out of it, and deserves to buy a "you beaut" brand new replacement.

Oh how wrong one is. I totter off to the yearly mega garage sale run by the nuns, and come out with a Tiffany (el cheapo) used ironing board for $5.00. It is a bit stiff and an ugly brown but who looks at ironing boards?Ofcourse the cover was in disgusting condition, but what the hey, I will make a replacement cover. While I am at it, (I think smuggly, in my save the planet, recycling mode) I will also make a replacement cover for my old table top ironing board, so they match.

Today I spent about an hour making said covers. They came up alright, but here is the gist. I noticed an ironing board at Spotlight last night for $29.95. ("Hmm," I think, "the prices of ironing boards have gone down, just like plasma teles") It isn't old, stiff and crappy. It was clean. It had a groovy little side panel to rest your iron on.  I bet it is lighter than the 1980's board I bought. If I had bought it I wouldn't have had to spend an hour making covers.

Let us say an hour of my time is worth $20. Plus the cost of the ironing board, $5. Cost of materials and elastic, $5. (the fabric is  27 years old and was free) You do the math. So the question remains, am I a miser or will I save the planet with my crafty recycling ways. Am I a superwoman or am I Ebinezer Scrooge? xxN