Hat Newby Question

[OneEyeMan]

I've had a Pendleton Wool hat for a while, but have never worn it because it's just a bit large. I bought a Large because the Med was too tight.
So, my question: is there a safe way to shrink the hat slightly?
Any other tips for wool hat care will also be appreciated.
Thanks all.
Lenny

 

[gtdean48]

Wool will shrink when wet. Have you put anything behind the sweatband to snug it up some? You can get felt squares at craft stores or craft section of Wal-mart & cut strips to put behind the sweat. What kind of sweatband does it have? Photos will help...

 

[OneEyeMan]

Good hint on the felt squares.
The hat just has a cloth sweat band, and I think it's open at the top.
That'll make it easy to just drop the felt in.
I'll try it, thanks.
Lenny

 

[avedwards]

Sorry to say it, but over the long term most wool felt hats won't last very well in weather. They'll lose their shape, shrink and/or taper. A fur felt (if well made which some but not all modern ones are) will last a lot longer.

 

[Dewhurst]

Sorry to say it, but over the long term most wool felt hats won't last very well in weather. They'll lose their shape, shrink and/or taper. A fur felt (if well made which some but not all modern ones are) will last a lot longer.

Unfortunately, even fur felt hats can have a tendency to nose dive when exposed to elements, albeit in less dramatic fashion (some of the time, but I have seen some doozies). Less likely, but it does happen.

Fur felt dress hats are not rain hats, simple as that.

 

[avedwards]

Fur felt dress hats are not rain hats, simple as that.

There are some fur felts which will last in the rain. My Stetson Chathm (in my avatar) has no problem with rain, having survived its fourth downpour two days ago (downpour meaning such continuous rain that my trench coat let water through). Akubra hats sound as though they can cope with it too. I agree to a certain extent though, there are many fur felt hats I would not want to wear in the rain.

 

[feltfan]

Fur felt dress hats are not rain hats, simple as that.

Huh? I do it all the time. So do many others on this site.
You can look up the many threads on this subject at your leisure.
I'd go so far as to say that many hats benefit from the rain,
often returning "remembered" block shape and giving a mild
cleaning to the hat.

Fur dress hats are rain hats, simple as that. That was
and still is one of the reason to wear a fur felt hat. A fur
felt hat that cannot take rain is not much of a hat.

 

[avedwards]

I think Dewhurst may have been referring to modern fur felts, some of which would probably not do too well in the rain. With vintage and good quality modern hats, rain is definitely not a problem I agree.

 

[Dewhurst]

Obviously, my comment was misunderstood.

No matter how well a fur felt dress hat is able to resist the potential ruin presented by the elements such as rain, I am still unable to call them "rain hats". It simply isn't fair. There are hats made specifically for rain, and other elements, and I reserve the term "rain hat" for them, even though fur felt may be wonderful at it as well. I could call a decent fur felt dress hat a dress hat that is able to withstand quite a bit of rain.

Calling a fur felt dress hat a "rain hat" is like calling a DVD an umbrella.

 

[avedwards]

I misunderstood you, but I see what you mean now. Just like a trenchcoat is not actually a rain coat as it will withstand a lot of rain, but it will eventually let water through (at least mine does if I spend several hours in the rain) so shower proof would be a better description.

 

[johnnycanuck]

You will not have any problem with an Akubra. Rain, snow, or sun. If you ever think of upgrading, you can't find a better hat for the price.

You can give your wool hat a shot of Scotchguard to help it last longer. It will also help it stand up to the elements better. Just remember to re-apply it every few months. Avoiding rain storms is a good idea as well.

Enjoy your hat.

Johnny

 

[Dewhurst]

I misunderstood you, but I see what you mean now. Just like a trenchcoat is not actually a rain coat as it will withstand a lot of rain, but it will eventually let water through (at least mine does if I spend several hours in the rain) so shower proof would be a better description.

Exactly.

As far as the original posters hat is concerned, I say give the felt strips or some other material behind the sweatband a shot, and see if that pulls down the size.

I'm not aware of a reliable way to uniformly shrink a hat, although that would be great. I have thought about it in the past, and wished there were, trust me. It occurred to me concerning a flat cap or two that I have. "Hey", I thought, "I could just throw this in the wash, and maybe it would shrink?"

But then, I was too scared to try it, for fear that my problem would reverse, and the flat cap would then be much too small, which would be a more difficult hill to climb. lol