Do not iron
The item is not suitable for ironing or pressing.
How to read it
A crossed-out iron means no ironing or pressing; GINETEX warns that irreversible changes are to be expected if an iron is used. An iron with a cross only through the lines beneath it is a different symbol, found in the Canadian guide: do not steam. The international system had no symbol for steam in ironing in 1997, when the US Federal Trade Commission compared the systems.
Where a garment's own label or its manufacturer says otherwise, that takes precedence.
Read next
More laundry symbols
The same shape elsewhere
Browse symbols drawn with crosses or curves and waves.
Sources
- Textiles — Care labelling code using symbols, ISO 3758, ISO, Abstract (ISO 3758:2023)
- Standard Guide for Care Symbols for Care Instructions on Textile Products, ASTM D5489, ASTM International, section 4.6 (ASTM D5489-25)
- Textile Care Symbols, GINETEX, the International Association for Textile Care Labelling, p. 8
- Guide to Apparel and Textile Care Symbols, CAN/CGSB-86.1-2003, Office of Consumer Affairs, Government of Canada, p. 5
- Trade Regulation Rule on Care Labeling of Textile Wearing Apparel and Certain Piece Goods (interim rule, 1997), 62 FR 5724, 6 February 1997, Federal Trade Commission, Federal Register (govinfo.gov)
Researched, edited and approved by Rory Hansen before publishing. Last reviewed September 24, 2026. How we research
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