The Funky Iron was launched in December 2018 and has since been followed by the Funky Kettle and Funky Toaster which hit the shelves in Spring 2021, all of which have created a rapidly growing Funky fan base. But looks can be deceiving, and it turned out that this steam generator system was an absolute dream to use. How does it work? You fill up the 1.8-litre water tank (which can last you for up to an incredible two hours of use), and then simply lift off the ultra-light iron from the base itself. The Freemove is very lightweight in the hand, not least because it’s cordless. Yes, you read right, cordless. After around 30 seconds of ironing, the base beeps to remind you to recharge. Then it takes 11 seconds to recharge – just enough time for you to adjust the garment to a new position. The timings work. As do the ergonomics: it slides comfortably onto the base and ironing cordlessly feels very natural. As part of the new licensing deal with RKW, we will launch a new range of Funky Housewares and Funky Cookware in 2022. RKW are very skilled in the sourcing of these products and we have worked closely with them in the design of our debut housewares range which will launch soon. The Funky Cookware range is being designed at the moment as well as a range of Funky Knives.

Key specs – Capacity: 0.3L; Dimensions: 15.8(H) x 12(W) x 31.1(D) cm; Weight: 2.3kg; Cable length: 3m; Wattage: 2800W; Steam output: 150gpm; Features: iTemp, MotorSteam, AntiShineIn recent decades, steam generator irons have emerged as a strong competitor to the traditional steam iron. These incorporate a separate steam-generator tank, which will typically be able to deliver a higher volume of steam to the soleplate than a traditional in-built reservoir could. Steam generator irons tend to have higher ironing power compared to a conventional iron – the only real downside is that they take up a lot more room. Things to consider My wife Sadie and I funded the first year of the business through a capital injection from our savings and we both worked unpaid for a whole year. This demonstrated to future investors that we had skin in the game and had taken significant risk ourselves. As the business has grown what are the major challenges you have faced, and have you overcome them? But it’s not perfect. The glide isn’t great and we weren’t so impressed with the steam and controls. Steam is on (25g/min) or off, there’s no adjustment. And as well as switching it on, you must constantly squeeze a trigger for steam. Surely one control should be enough. While under your thumb are buttons for water spray and steam boost (115g/min) which can be used vertically. But these are quite hard to squeeze, nowhere near as ergonomic as the rest of the Tefal. The only other button is for the anti-calc mode.

The Philips PerfectCare system involves no temperature controls, flattening everything from silk to denim (not that you should iron jeans, but you get my drift) without having to change the temperature setting.Even more magically, you can leave the iron face down on any fabric – even a silk nighty – and, somehow, it will not burn.This writer actually tried this and I'm still married, so big result there. My experience of this having gone through multiple rounds of investment on crowdfunding platforms, with angel investors and with hedge funds, is that you need to listen to what your gut feel tells you about an investment opportunity and the people behind it. If you have the slightest doubt about whether to do a deal or not, don’t do it. You need to be 100 per cent certain that it makes sense and that you are happy with it. Crowdfunding gives you the perfect tool to raise important capital and bring in an army of people who want you to do well, without any one or two investors wanting to then take over the business and run it. Again, my experience in the past is that you can only have one boss making the final decision and running the business. If there are too many chefs, it won’t work. How do you measure success for yourself, your investors, your staff and your customers?

Things to consider

Joe and Sadie have had four successful equity crowdfunding campaigns on Europe’s leading equity crowdfunding platform Seedrs. This has been a fantastic way to launch the business and gain an army of supporters. If you’re looking for a high-powered iron to work at really stubborn creases, a steam generator iron might be your best bet. We’ve reviewed two of them alongside a selection of conventional steam irons for this article. The Funky Iron has a lifelong anti-scale system built into it. It also has water spray and self-clean buttons. A complimentary heat-resistant silicone pad is included to rest your iron on your ironing board. The life of a steam iron reviewer is not an easy one. Derek Adams and our other iron specialists have no other way to test irons than to use them at home. As a result, our reviewers are always very crisply turned out, but a bit bored of ironing. Good thing we pay them such a princely sum for their efforts!

Hold the iron up and press the steam shot button to refresh and un-crease hanging garments and curtains. Any niggles? Well auto shut-off is a bit too short for my liking (about four minutes) and my test machine does spurt a little water out of the ultra-light soleplate the first time you use it. Hence, I would advise holding the soleplate away from your fabrics until the steam settles. I should add that this is quite a common anomaly with steam generators where condensation collects under the soleplate and in the hose. This steam generator heats up in a respectable two minutes and comes with a large 2-litre reservoir. It’s powerful, too, with a continuous steam output of 125 g/min and a commendable boost figure of 500 g/min. Anti-scale technology: This stops limescale from building up (which can damage your iron and your clothes). This makes your iron last longer and is particularly useful for people who live in a hard water area. Regular cloth iron cannot do the job as a steam iron can. Another reason to use a steam iron could be because of its digital display. The right products will always make your job easy. There are a lot of steam irons available today. They could be portable ones, lightweight irons for home use, or heavy-duty irons for laundry shops. To have the right product is essential, and here are some facts to consider while purchasing a steam iron.We’ve been a little spoilt with some of the high-tech irons featured in this article – but we should point out that it’s quite possible to get a serviceable steam iron for under a tenner. There may be some water residue in the tank. This is due to each Funky Iron being rigorously tested before leaving the factory. At Ideal Home we know how important it is to have hands-on experience with products before we recommend them to you, in line with our testing protocol. That's why we've tested every iron in this round-up extensively at our test facility before coming to the conclusion in this ranking. That included testing them on shirts, linen, and bedsheets to test their credentials.

However, if you regularly deal with a lot of laundry, a steam generator will certainly make life much easier. Obviously, if you only iron shirts for weddings and funerals, they could be slight overkill, in which case, a bog-standard steam iron is the device for you. How we test ironsKey specs – Capacity: 0.45L; Dimensions: 26.8 x 14.8 x 11.3 cm; Weight: 1kg; Cable length: 3m; Wattage: 2600W; Steam output: 50gpm; Features: Anti-calc, auto-off The business originally started life as The Funky Iron Company, with Sadie and Joe designing a unique looking electric steam iron. The Funky Iron idea was born from the couple being avid ironers – thanks, in part, to the couple’s three children as there was always a lot of ironing to be done in their household!