I just finished a thorough cleaning of my vintage homburg (the one in my avatar.) I started with an automotive product called Turtle Wax Upholstery Cleaner. It is a foam that is brushed into the fabric (or felt in this case.) After drying, you can brush off any residue. This handled the felt but didn't do anything for the discoloration on the binding. I went over the hat with naphtha (dry cleaning chemical) and paper towel. This got rid of 90% of the binding discoloration and made the kitchen smell like a dry cleaning shop. I think the result was pretty good. The hat doesn't look new since it is a half century or more old. But it looks pretty clean at least.
How do you handle vintage hat cleaning?
How do you handle vintage hat cleaning?
