For sale is an antique three legged TRIVET for a SAD FLAT IRON from an unknown manufacturer. This one-piece, solid cast iron is in excellent condition. Trivet measures about 6 inches in length and 4 1/2 inches wide. The SAD iron depicted is sold separately.
Sad irons, also called flat irons or smoothing irons, are shaped pieces of metal that are flat and polished on one side and have a handle attached to the other, created for the purpose of de-wrinkling fabric. “Sad” is an old English word for “solid,” and the term “sad iron” is often used to distinguish the largest and heaviest of flat irons, usually 5 to 9 pounds. The forebears to modern electric irons, flat irons are often triangular or come to a point to make it easier to iron around buttons. The heft of a sad iron would help it hold heat, as well as to press the fabric flat. To protect fabric and surfaces from singeing, sad irons often came with metal trivets to rest on. Sad irons are often-beautiful, intricate, and collectible examples of metalwork. Irons were usually sold in sets of two or more because while one iron was used the other was left to heat on the stove.