Hat band problem for my 11 y/o nephew

[57plymouth]

Yup, the title is right. Here is a picture of the hat band on my 11 year old nephew's fedora.

The back story is that my father, my nephew and I all have the same brown fedora. We bought them together, and it was the first fedora for all of us. Here's a photo from the day we bought them. My nephew is 8 in this photo! (I'm not that fat anymore)

Anyway, to get three fedoras that looked right, and that would fit all of us, we bought my nephew a 7. It was pretty big of course, so my mother put handkerchiefs into the hat band to make it fit right. The result is that now the band is puckered, and he no longer needs the handkerchiefs. The hat fits, but it is riding on the puckered parts of the had band. As he grows, the hat will be too small. Of course, he will likely outgrow the hat, but we would like him to continue to enjoy it as long as possible.

So, how can we get the puckering out of the hat band?

 

[gtdean48]

...So, how can we get the puckering out of the hat band?

A vintage hat stretcher, one that is wider than the sweatband, just enough tention to put the hat to it's correct size. I've had sweats in much worse shape than this one flatten out quite nicely. Modern hat stretchers are thinner than sweatbands & only press the front & back where the vintage ones do a better job all around in addition to being wider. Taking it to a hatter with a full size stretcher would help too. HTH

 

[Aureliano]

:arated: gtdean's right. What I also do to make the sweat even, and before putting the stretcher in the hat, is spray the inside of the sweat with water. Leave the stretcher in for a while until the sweat dries, and you're good to go.

 

[bolthead]

:arated: gtdean's right. What I also do to make the sweat even, and before putting the stretcher in the hat, is spray the inside of the sweat with water. Leave the stretcher in for a while until the sweat dries, and you're good to go.

Be very careful when doing this. When the sweat dries, it could adhere directly to the hat jack, when you pull it out, it will peel away.

It already happened to a fellow lounger here, I just don't remember who it was, exactly. [huh]

 

[gtdean48]

:arated: gtdean's right. What I also do to make the sweat even, and before putting the stretcher in the hat, is spray the inside of the sweat with water. Leave the stretcher in for a while until the sweat dries, and you're good to go.

I only wet a sweatband inorder to shrink it. Leather draws as it dries. I'd use leather condition instead of water & then I'd put something thin, like a hankerchief between the stretcher & the band, especially a vintage stretcher.
HTH

 

[57plymouth]

Would something like waxed paper be good to prevent the sweat band from sticking?

Are the adjustable stretchers the ones to get or should I hunt up a stretcher that is the correct size for the hat?

Thanks for the quick replies!!

 

[Aureliano]

wetting the leather can either shrink it or stretch it. When wet the leather becomes maleable to either option. If you use the hat jack/stretcher it will only mantein the desired shape. I've never had peeling issues though I've only done this on modern hats. Tissue can always be applied in between.

 

[zetwal]

Would something like waxed paper be good to prevent the sweat band from sticking?

What about Saran (plastic) wrap?

 

[fluteplayer07]

I can see the wax, water, and old leather getting... nasty. Think saran wrap is okay? Some sort of chemical in it that might mess up the leather (or the color at the least)? I've always been wary of plastic wrap... [huh]