Ironing, linen and textiles in Capelle aan den IJssel
Capelle aan den IJssel was the shipyard municipality on the edge of Rotterdam. In the nineteenth century, the yards of Piet Smit jr., Otto Koning, Van der Giessen and De Noord lay along the Hollandse IJssel — every one of them suppliers of seagoing vessels, inland barges and, in the twentieth century, dredgers for IHC. A Capelle man by definition had a pair of overalls in the cupboard and, for good measure, a starched Sunday shirt for church and, later, for the trade-union meeting.
In the working-class districts of Capelle-West and Middelwatering, the shirt stood for something. Shipyard workers spent ten hours a day with oil, welding sparks and steel dust; but on Sunday morning you appeared in the Reformed or Dutch Reformed church with a white, crisply ironed shirt, polished shoes and a neatly bowed back. The ironing board in the back room was running at full tilt by Saturday evening. Often mother and daughter stood side by side, each with her own iron, in a kind of choreography of two panels and four cuffs per shirt.
The yards have largely vanished — IHC still has a presence, but the great shipyard era lies behind us. Capelle is now a commuter town, in the Schollevaar and Oostgaarde districts, with many dual-income households who work in Rotterdam or further afield. The Sunday shirt has become a weekday shirt; its upkeep remains.
Since 2013 we have been driving from our laundry on the Henricuskade through Capelle aan den IJssel on fixed mornings. Laundry bag collected, ironed, delivered — same driver, same day.
How does Strijkservice Haaglanden work in Capelle aan den IJssel?
For residents of Capelle aan den IJssel our service works exactly as in the rest of Haaglanden: on a fixed day of the week our driver comes by, picks up your laundry bag and brings your laundry back clean and crisply ironed. No appointment needed — your routine is set.
You get one regular driver and a fixed pickup rhythm so you always know what to expect. No carrying, no full drying racks in the living room, no evenings at the ironing board.
Everything is handled in our own laundry on Henricuskade in The Hague. Shirts, blouses, table linen, bed and bath textiles — we iron it the way it should go back into the cupboard at home, neatly folded and ready to use.