Cleaning a hat band in place?

[T Rick]

I just picked up a nice looking Mallory Ten, looks to be in great shape except some staining on the otherwise beautiful vintage grosgrain copper/brown band. I'd be tempted to try spraying it down with distilled water, brushing it with a mild soap or perhaps baby shampoo, spray-rinse with more distilled water and let air dry at room temperature.

Obviously, I am a noob and don't have a clue, so I wanted to get input. Would the above damage/adversely affect the band? Is there a better way, a feasible way to clean the band without removing it? Should I simply send the hat out for a professional cleaning, or is there some (safe) method I might try at home to see if I can get results? (Pics are from the auction)

 

[fmw]

Why don't you want to remove the band?

 

[T Rick]

Why don't you want to remove the band?

Fair question. I am working on the assumption (often not a good thing to do) that it is tacked/sewn in place. I'd rather not disturb anything original on the hat if possible. If it will simply slip off, then perhaps dry cleaning might be the best alternative? Or, maybe not...

 

[fmw]

Personally, I would remove the band and toss it, clean the hat and replace the ribbon with a new one.

 

[T Rick]

Personally, I would remove the band and toss it, clean the hat and replace the ribbon with a new one.

That may be the ultimate solution, but if the original band is salvageable, I see no reason to discard it. Wanting to explore those options before going to that extreme (modern grosgrain isn't up to par with vintage so I've heard, and since this is presumably original to the hat, seems only fitting to do my best to retain/restore it first).

 

[Aureliano]

Personally, I would remove the band and toss it, clean the hat and replace the ribbon with a new one.

That sounds like a bad idea. Vintage ribbon is great and hard to find these days. You want to keep the hat's integrity as much as possible. If the band had holes and tears, then sure.
you won't harm the hat by removing the ribbon. Simple cut the threads/tacks from the felt under the sweat,-never under the ribbon itself as you could make a hole in it. Wash it carefully with mild soap and cold water and then let it air dry. Attaching it is very simple if you know basic sewing.

 

[Cane Rod Maker]

I have to agree. You don't want to replace that ribbon unless there is a stain it in which just will not come out. In fact, you could try doing it in place. I have one that I did like this......I removed the liner, it was/is pristine and I didn't want to harm it. Carefully, no brush, and with my finger; I gently rubbed in Advanced Formula Shout Stain Remover, Gel into the ribbon, the entire ribbon. Then I gave the hat a bath in the sink, cold water and rinsed it all out. Set it aside on a towel to air dry. But then there are stains that just wont come out....Someone mentioned vinigar and water as a method once to disolve sweat stains; but I have not tried that yet.

That sounds like a bad idea. Vintage ribbon is great and hard to find these days. You want to keep the hat's integrity as much as possible. If the band had holes and tears, then sure.
you won't harm the hat by removing the ribbon. Simple cut the threads/tacks from the felt under the sweat,-never under the ribbon itself as you could make a hole in it. Wash it carefully with mild soap and cold water and then let it air dry. Attaching it is very simple if you know basic sewing.

 

[Viktor]

Nice buy, is this the one that closed out on ebay yesterday?

I searched FL for removing sweat on liners & felt and came up with this list: Quick'n Brite, Oxyclean, Woolite and Nappa. Caution when cleaning, I recently used warm water with a damp rag to wipe off some dirt and mildew on a Lock & Co. Homburg and noticed that one ribbon edge came unstitched.

Somewhere vinegar is mentoned with this link: http://www.versatilevinegar.org/

 

[T Rick]

Thanks all for the thoughts and tips! I'll post results once I've received the hat and worked on it.

Nice buy, is this the one that closed out on ebay yesterday?

I searched FL for removing sweat on liners & felt and came up with this list: Quick'n Brite, Oxyclean, Woolite and Nappa. Caution when cleaning, I recently used warm water with a damp rag to wipe off some dirt and mildew on a Lock & Co. Homburg and noticed that one ribbon edge came unstitched.

Somewhere vinegar is mentoned with this link: http://www.versatilevinegar.org/

Yes, that is the one. Really looking forward to it, I hope it will be in pretty good shape. Thanks for the tips, I will contemplate a method once I've had a chance to look it over. I will probably take the same approach I've taken when cleaning up vintage razors, that is use the least harsh, damaging method that will get the job done, so as to best preserve the original condition. Try one method, if it fails, step it up a notch.

 

[Sam Craig]

I've had great luck with the following

Remove the liner if practical

fold down the sweat ... again, if practical. If it's brittle, leave it in place

Use a mild liquid soap ... hand or dish ... use a spritzer to wet the ribbon ... wet all of it ... then rub the affected area and spritz again, rinsing out the soap

Let everything air dry and you'll be surprised at the results

It shouldn't bother the hat

Sometimes it works ... and sometimes you end up deciding which is more important ... original ribbon or perfect ribbon

But I have had the ribbon end up looing like new

You can remove the ribbon, but make sure you do it carefully

Unless the stains are just awful, you should be able to save it

Sam

 

[thumper]

Fmw are you from texas ? ever been to Paris Hatters in San Antonio Tx ?

 

[fmw]

Fmw are you from texas ? ever been to Paris Hatters in San Antonio Tx ?

No, I'm an Oregonian transplanted to the midwest. I love San Antonio but have never been to Paris Hatters. I've probably been in every Mexican restaurant in town, however.