How do you get chalk marks off of a felt hat?

[Spellflower]

I'm a teacher of the deaf, and my job involves going to different preschools and working with deaf children, helping them to succeed in mainstream classrooms. I interact with all the children, since four year olds don't really understand why I'm there. However, I don't have any authority over the other kids, and so they sometimes like to test the limits with me, especially when I'm just starting in the class, and they don't know me. That's the case with the class I was in today. They like me, but they also know I'm a new guy, and not a regular teacher. I'm also a man, which is something they often associate with wild/roughousing play. Usually this is short lived once they see that I respond just as their other teachers would.

Today, while I was sitting with my student on the playground one of her classmates decided to sneak up behind me and dump a whole box of sidewalk chalk on my head, which, unfortunately, meant my Akubra Fedora. I know that he had no idea what a pain he was causing me, so I suppressed my frustration, and responded professionally. But the damage was done. My lovely brown Fedora is now streaked with pastel rainbow. Fortunately for me, I drive to this school, so I didn't have to wear the hat in public on the subway.

So, Loungers, any suggestions for cleaning this hat? Do I need to have it professionally done, or can I do it myself? If it needs a professional, anyone know if there's one in NYC I can trust? I'd always hoped that my first dealing with Optimo would be to have them restore the 1940 Stetson of my dreams, not an Akubra! Any help is appreciated.

 

[indycop]

did you try a hatbrush?

 

[Damon Falzone]

Vacuum first, then a good brushing then maybe damp sponge? Experiment. Good luck.

 

[LEUII]

I'm no expert, but a damp sponge may well set the chalk by dissolving it an allowing it to be absorbed by the felt.

 

[Dinerman]

Have you tried one of those compressed air duster thingies yet?

 

[tonyb]

Yup, yup, yup and yup. I can't imagine that dry chalk (please tell me it didn't get wet) would become one with the hat's fibers.

 

[jamespowers]

Do a combination of a few things already advised. If you have a vacuum cleaner with attachments then use the brush attachment with the vacuum cleaner. That should brush and lift the chalk at the same time. Anything that doesn't come out with this, use a the hat brush on or try to "beat" it out against your leg like you see in those old movies.

Regards,

J

 

[Kentucky Blues]

Also, with whatever you do, go counter-clockwise with the top of the hat facing you. And I agree, don't let it get wet.

 

[tonyb]

I think we are all assuming that the composition of this chalk is pretty much the same as the stuff we used to write on blackboards with (that's back in the dark ages, dinerman). Is this sidewalk chalk indeed like that? Or does it have anything "oily" in it, like artist's pastels do? Cuz if it does, we may be in for a bigger challenge.
My very limited experience with the newfangled variety has me thinking that it is probably just like the old stuff, except it comes in colors and much larger sticks.

 

[Kentucky Blues]

It may even be more brittle. I'm considering dusting some of my nieces on an old hat to see how easy it is to clean. In fact, I think I'll do that now....

 

[Kentucky Blues]

Okay, I've chalked a hat, and it came out pretty easily going counterclockwise with a dry paper towel. I then gently sprayed the areas after I got most of it out, leaving faint ghosts behind, and tried the paper towel again, and got the rest of it pretty much out. When it was wet, I still went counter clockwise, but in a back and forth motion. I then did it on my old fed deluxe, with even better results, but that felt has long since changed from when I got it..

 

[WideBrimm]

After using vacuum and hat brush (and before applying anything damp) you might try a dry hat sponge. It works like an eraser. Just use it gently.

 

[Spellflower]

Thanks for all the advice! Kentucky Blues, you went beyond the call of duty experimenting with your own lids- many thanks! :eusa_clap

I think I'll start with vacuuming, and then see what I can do with paper towels. I'm sure I can find a hat brush and/or sponge somewhere in town- especially with all the hat wearing Jews in the neighborhood, but it may have to wait till the weekend. I'll try to remember to take some before and after shots for future victims.

By the way, the chalk in question didn't seem to be in any way oily, just plain old chalk, with colors, and in big pieces.

fftopic: We have smilies that clap, slap their foreheads, shrug their shoulders, and laugh, but none that remove their hats. The clapping is okay, but it would be great if I could say "hats off to you, Kentucky Blues," in a smiley. Anyone good at programming that type of thing?

 

[Josephine]

fftopic: We have smilies that clap, slap their foreheads, shrug their shoulders, and laugh, but none that remove their hats. The clapping is okay, but it would be great if I could say "hats off to you, Kentucky Blues," in a smiley. Anyone good at programming that type of thing?

Like this?

It's a glowy Angel Hat!

Yeah, I'm working on that...

 

[jeff]

Josephine beat me to it! Well, here's mine anyway:

 

[Josephine]

Josephine beat me to it! Well, here's mine anyway:

Your hat is snazzier than the one I used.

 

[Kentucky Blues]

Josephine beat me to it! Well, here's mine anyway:

Hey, that looks like Cary Grant!

And Spellfire, no problem I was afraid to try it on any hats that I wear, so I put it on a real piece of crap, lol. Then afterwards, I realized my akubra is also in pretty much unwearable condition, so no harm came there. And then there was my certainty that chalk would be harmless, so it really wasn't that big of a deal to try it. It was kind of fun, actually