Club Obi Wan

Does anybody have any tips for caring for my fedora- it isn't waterproof. I am looking for some tips on how to clean it, and possibly how to re-block it as well.

Thanks,

Robby

Whatever you do, don't get it wet! Those things swell up like pufferfish!

And shrink!

...in that order

Robby, you could always Scotch Guard the hat for a certain amount of water repellancy, but don't use the silicone-based stuff. There's a kind which is meant specifically for hats, etc. Do a basic search here for scotch guard and you should find the right stuff to use. Keep in mind you may want to reblock it before Scotch Guarding it. If you get a decent horsehair brush (actually, a new, small shoe shine brush NOT used on shoes will work) and brush around the hat in the direction of the felt nap. That will help clean it from dust and dirt. Even a damp (not soaking) cloth could help.

I'm not sure how you would easily reblock a wool hat, since by its nature it will want to shrink when wet. You could always "dry block" it by pulling the dry hat over a hat block instead of a wet hat body. You'd probably want to leave the hat on the block a few days to let the shape settle in.

Stiffener! Wool will taper easily, but stiffener will help slow that down.

Also there are surprisingly different grades of wool felt. If this is an official Dorfman Pacific Indy hat, it ranges from a low grade wool (Mostly children sizes) and medium grade wool(Most adult sizes). Either one of those you don't want to get wet and neither one is made for a real adventure... let alone regular travel.

Scala and Stetson carry "premium" types of wool on some of their hats, some to the extent I had to check the label inside to see if it was rabbit felt. It holds up a lot better and has a lot less stiffener than most wool hats.. Remember that even though there is better wool and it won't taper as fast, it's still wool and won't hold up like a fur felt hat.

Tycoonman

Do not expose a wool hat to rain, snow, sleet, hail, daylight, oxygen, nitrogen, argon, radioactive isotopes, people with a fear of sea sponges, weekdays, lunar eclipses, Easter, dust, pestilence, flooding, lightning, fireflies, Mardi Gras, the Indy 500, elevator music, earthquakes, dying embers of a fire, walks on the beach, walks just next to the beach, walks far away from the beach, anyone with hypogonadism, spirits from the other side, spirits from this side, volcanic eruptions, swarms of locusts, acid reflux disease, dead batteries, famine, bad breath, excessive flatulence, corn on the cob, light beer, things that go bump in the night and/or barnyard animals. Then you should be all right.

'Blues