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I wanted to show how easy it is to shape, reshape and clean your felt hat in your own home. These steps are simplistic, If I can do it, anybody can.
I own and have worn on a regular basis several expensive beaver felt hats, Most with 20 & 30X beaver. Brands like Stetson, Resistol, Larry Mahan, & Amercian. I do my own shaping and cleaning.
One..... Go and purchase distilled water, one gal. is enough. DO NOT USE TAP WATER!!! If you use tap water you could very likely leave white stains on your nice hat.
Two.... Go to the kitchen and get a good size pot, not to big, and especially not to small. Place the distilled water in the pot about 1/2 to 3/4 full.
Three... Place aluminum foil over the pot. With a fork, poke holes in the foil. I usually place about four to six holes with the fork close to each other. Place on stovetop and bring to a boil.
Four... As the water comes to a hard boil, place the hat over the steam and move the hat around the steam. If you want to only shape a particular area then just hold that part of the hat over the steam. I recommend moving the hat around just slightly, even if all you want to do is one part.
Five... As the hat starts getting soft, you can start shaping the area or areas that need the work. Remember! keep the hat soft. If you do not allow the steam to penetrate the hat you could very easily break an area in the wool.
Six...Once you have the desired shape, allow the hat to cool. Place the hat on your head in order for it to remember the crown shape. Place the hat upside down on the crown, or on a hat holder flat on the table with the brim free & not touching the table. If you shape your hat then lay it flat one a table it will curl up around the edges as it cools. I also suggest letting it sit for about an hour.
On another note, hat cleaning. You can use a varity of cleaning methods, to tape. Thee one that I use. Is a hat cleaner. At said western stores, they sell hat cleaners. They look like a bright orange sponge. You use them like a brush. If you have several hat colors then I suggest purchasing two. The reason, one for lighter color hat and of course one for darker colors. They are not very expensive. Beats using tape. The hat brush(sponge) works faster and is excellant in removing dirt, whereas using tape will not remove all the dirt. The sponge gets down in the felt or beaver but does not hurt the hat,nor take away any of the layers. Tape only removes what is on top. They are very safe to use. If I trust it on my 20 and 30x beavers I know it can be used on hats that we wear in the hobby.
If you do not feel comfortable doing it yourself, carry your hat to a local western store. They will be happy to shape and clean it for a price. Believe me, you can do this yourself.
Now I want to say this. I am not sure if this will work on those $20.00 common sutler hats. It should, but I have never owned any "cheap hats."
You get what you pay for.
I own and have worn on a regular basis several expensive beaver felt hats, Most with 20 & 30X beaver. Brands like Stetson, Resistol, Larry Mahan, & Amercian. I do my own shaping and cleaning.
One..... Go and purchase distilled water, one gal. is enough. DO NOT USE TAP WATER!!! If you use tap water you could very likely leave white stains on your nice hat.
Two.... Go to the kitchen and get a good size pot, not to big, and especially not to small. Place the distilled water in the pot about 1/2 to 3/4 full.
Three... Place aluminum foil over the pot. With a fork, poke holes in the foil. I usually place about four to six holes with the fork close to each other. Place on stovetop and bring to a boil.
Four... As the water comes to a hard boil, place the hat over the steam and move the hat around the steam. If you want to only shape a particular area then just hold that part of the hat over the steam. I recommend moving the hat around just slightly, even if all you want to do is one part.
Five... As the hat starts getting soft, you can start shaping the area or areas that need the work. Remember! keep the hat soft. If you do not allow the steam to penetrate the hat you could very easily break an area in the wool.
Six...Once you have the desired shape, allow the hat to cool. Place the hat on your head in order for it to remember the crown shape. Place the hat upside down on the crown, or on a hat holder flat on the table with the brim free & not touching the table. If you shape your hat then lay it flat one a table it will curl up around the edges as it cools. I also suggest letting it sit for about an hour.
On another note, hat cleaning. You can use a varity of cleaning methods, to tape. Thee one that I use. Is a hat cleaner. At said western stores, they sell hat cleaners. They look like a bright orange sponge. You use them like a brush. If you have several hat colors then I suggest purchasing two. The reason, one for lighter color hat and of course one for darker colors. They are not very expensive. Beats using tape. The hat brush(sponge) works faster and is excellant in removing dirt, whereas using tape will not remove all the dirt. The sponge gets down in the felt or beaver but does not hurt the hat,nor take away any of the layers. Tape only removes what is on top. They are very safe to use. If I trust it on my 20 and 30x beavers I know it can be used on hats that we wear in the hobby.
If you do not feel comfortable doing it yourself, carry your hat to a local western store. They will be happy to shape and clean it for a price. Believe me, you can do this yourself.
Now I want to say this. I am not sure if this will work on those $20.00 common sutler hats. It should, but I have never owned any "cheap hats."
You get what you pay for.
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