Hat Care
There are many things you can do to insure that your hat will have a long and fufilling life. Here are some helpful tips for storage and cleaning:
- When you are storing a hat, it is always best to either keep it in a hat box, hang it up on a hook, or on a shelf where it won’t get crushed. If your hat is spending the off-season on a shelf, make sure to either flip it upside down or with the front brim hanging over the ledge. This will ensure that the hat doesn’t flatten out! You can also stuff the crown with tissue paper or leave it on a plastic form.
- Make sure to keep all of your hats out of direct sun for long periods of time. Straw hats can become dry and crack if left in the sun for too long.
- Unless a hat is specifically treated to be water resistant, don’t wear it in the rain!
- Always handle your hat by the brim!!!!! The crown, structurally, is the weakest part of the hat and straw hats can crack along the crown if you aren’t careful! If you find that you need a little extra support up there, just put a little line of hot glue inside the pinch!
- To reshape a straw hat, you can steam it with a clothing steamer. Just hold the misshapen section hat in the steam for a few seconds, remove it, and gently work the hat into the desired shape with your hands. If you don’t have a clothing steamer, a tea kettle works just as well! This also works to steam a crease out of a ribbon on your hat!
- To remove dirt from a straw hat, simply use a dampened cloth and a mild detergent to go over the stain. Please make sure to test on the inside of the crown first! When finished cleaning, blot the straw with a clean, dry cloth.
- To remove dirt from a cloth or canvas hat we find that an Instant Stain Removing pen, like one found in your grocery store’s laundry aisle, works great! Just make sure, as always, to test on the inside of the hat first.
