I wrote about this hat in another thread, but I bought a reconfigured and brim cut western 5X fur felt hat. I think it looks a lot like the Open Road. Problem is that the crown looks way to tall for me. The hat has a crown which is higher in the front than in the back, and has a really nice teardrop crown with a pinched front. I basically love everything about this hat except for the stiffness and the height of the crown. Makes my slender face look like a stovepipe. It has been suggested that I could probably reshape the crown, and knock the height down a bit. As a side note, I think the skinny ribbon leaves to much of the body exposed, and I may need a wider ribbon put on.
So anyway, I think I am going to try my hand at reshaping since this is not a vintage hat. I have been told that if I want to lose some of the stiffener, I should soak the hat in distilled water but dont get the leather brim wet or it will shrink. How do you guys do that? Just dunk the body part of the hat? Or do you spray it with a spray bottle? I know that many use denatured alcohol during reshaping, but that doesn't remove the stiffener, just allows it to be pliable. Should I use that technique first for reshaping and then worry about softening the body either on purpose, or say wearing in a rainstorm? I always read about people dunking and washing their vintage hats in water and woolite, but how do you do that without getting the band wet? My problem is that I keep reading snippets of how to do these things, but not all together putting the pieces together for a good understanding. I figure I will learn on this hat rather than one of the vintage hats that already has little to no stiffness left.
So anyway, I think I am going to try my hand at reshaping since this is not a vintage hat. I have been told that if I want to lose some of the stiffener, I should soak the hat in distilled water but dont get the leather brim wet or it will shrink. How do you guys do that? Just dunk the body part of the hat? Or do you spray it with a spray bottle? I know that many use denatured alcohol during reshaping, but that doesn't remove the stiffener, just allows it to be pliable. Should I use that technique first for reshaping and then worry about softening the body either on purpose, or say wearing in a rainstorm? I always read about people dunking and washing their vintage hats in water and woolite, but how do you do that without getting the band wet? My problem is that I keep reading snippets of how to do these things, but not all together putting the pieces together for a good understanding. I figure I will learn on this hat rather than one of the vintage hats that already has little to no stiffness left.