Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This is my first review for any product. Although I buy a lot of stuff online, I have never been inspired enough by the quality of a product (good or bad) to write a review about it. This time I am. I bought this ironing board to replace an inexpensive one that I had for years, that was finally giving out. Most of the reviewers of this board said that it was worth the extra cost because it was very well made, exceptionally sturdy and stable, etc. I agree that the board seems sturdy, but I never had a problem with my old inexpensive board falling over. The added stability of this ironing board, if it in fact has an advantage over others, is totally outweighed by two drawbacks that come with this board. First, the ironing board comes with an extremely cheap / poor quality "ironing pad." I put that in quotations because the "pad" is a 1/8" thick piece of foam. If you actually decide to iron with the factory-supplied foam, you will have a metal mesh imprint on your shirts if you press the iron down with a normal degree of firmness. For an ironing board that costs as much as this one, they ought to supply a decent pad. For this reviewer, the board is not usable without an aftermarket replacement foam pad. That's problem number one. Second, also of poor quality is the factory supplied ironing board COVER (made out of cotton, and fits over the "pad" and secures it to the ironing board frame -- this is the surface you actually iron on). Mine arrived with dirt on it, so I had to remove it and wash it in cold water (to prevent shrinkage). I air-dried to prevent shrinkage as well. Despite those precautions, it shrunk A LOT, and could not be reattached to the board. Yes, that's right, do not EVER plan to wash the ironing board cover, because if you are foolish enough to do so, you will NEVER get it back on there; it will not be wide enough to span the width of the ironing board. This brings us to the third problem. This ironing board is a lot wider than a standard one. So when I went back to Amazon and dropped another $60 or so for a new deluxe ironing PAD and ironing board COVER (sold separately), they arrived and they do not fit. Not even close. So make a note to yourself if you buy this ironing board that you will never be able to use standard ironing pads and covers - you will be limited to the custom or large-size ones if you can find them. I do have a fourth observation that is significant to me and may be to others. When I am ironing shirts, I like to stick the narrow end of the ironing board into the sleeve from the body of the shirt to press the yoke and the top of the sleeve near the shoulder. You cannot do that with this ironing board because the narrow part of this board is a lot wider than conventional ironing boards. I am now the owner of this wide board and a new ironing pad and cover that will fit only a conventionally shaped ironing board. The pad and cover look to be of better quality to me, so it will be the board going back to Amazon.