Ironing symbols
Every pressing instruction on a tag is one little iron with something added — dots for heat, crossed-out steam for dry pressing, an X for none of it.
The iron shape is the container for the whole family. Dots inside it set a heat ceiling: one dot low, two medium, three high. Steam lines crossed out beneath the iron mean press it dry — the heat is fine, the water is not. An X through the entire iron means keep the soleplate off the garment altogether.
One honest note before the list: almost no iron sold has dots on its dial. Yours names fabrics instead — “synthetic,” “silk/wool,” “cotton/linen” — and those three words are the same three dots, in that order. Every page below gives you both, plus the temperature in °C and °F, because that is the translation the tag leaves out.
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Iron, any temperature · iron
Ironing is fine at any temperature, with or without steam.
If you ignore it: No trap here — the plain iron means the fabric tolerates your hottest setting.
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Iron, low heat · iron with one dot
Iron on low — up to about 110°C — for acetate, acrylic, and nylon.
If you ignore it: A medium iron melts or glazes synthetics on contact, and a shine mark on acetate is permanent.
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Iron, medium heat · iron with two dots
Iron on medium — up to about 150°C — for wool, silk, and polyester blends.
If you ignore it: A cotton-hot iron scorches wool and silk before you smell it happening.
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Iron, high heat · iron with three dots
Iron on high — up to about 200°C — for cotton and linen.
If you ignore it: None from going cooler; high heat is the allowance that makes linen actually smooth.
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Do not iron · iron crossed out
Don't iron it at all — no pressing, no steam.
If you ignore it: Prints, pleats, coatings, and elastics deform under a hot soleplate — steamers included.
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Iron without steam · iron with crossed-out steam beneath
Iron dry — steam is the problem, not the heat.
If you ignore it: Steam waterspots silks and rayons and can bubble fused interfacings even at a safe temperature.
Questions people actually ask
What do the dots inside the iron symbol mean?
Heat, as a ceiling. One dot is low, up to about 110°C (230°F), for acetate, acrylic, and nylon. Two dots is medium, about 150°C (300°F), for wool, silk, and polyester blends. Three dots is high, about 200°C (390°F), for cotton and linen. Cooler than the dots is always allowed.
My iron’s dial names fabrics, not dots. How do they line up?
In order: one dot is the synthetic setting, two dots is the silk/wool setting, three dots is cotton/linen. Dials run warm or cool from one iron to the next, so when the dial wording and the tag’s dots don’t quite agree, take the lower setting and test on an inside seam.
Can I use steam if the tag just shows an iron with dots?
Yes. Steam is only ruled out when the tag draws steam lines crossed out beneath the iron. A plain iron, or an iron with dots and nothing underneath it, leaves the steam button to you.
There is no iron symbol on my tag at all. Can I iron it?
Probably, but nothing on the tag promises it. A missing iron symbol usually means the maker saw no reason to warn you, not that high heat was tested. Start on the lowest setting, use a pressing cloth, and try an inside seam before the front of the garment.
Holding a tag with several of these at once? Tap them into the decoder and get one plan.