Straw hat help

lostinrates

I did ask this sometime ago on the health and beauty board, but go no answer, so thought I might get a good answer here

I have a couple of lovely straw hats of which the brim has gone floppy over time.

I want them stiffer so they are not flopping over my eyes down while I'm outside working. Does anybody know can I stiffen and shape the brim without ruining the hats, or is it a matter of buying a new one?

Aril

I honestly don't know whether this would work not having tried it myself but could you water down some PVA glue and then paint it on [it will dry clear] the brim. I would think that it would stiffen as it dries. If it's a case of having to buy another one if you can't find a solution then might be worth a go. My only other thought was perhaps spray starch?
Aril

mouseymousey99

Sounds like you need to steam the hats over a hot kettle. (OH does this with a panama hat he is rather fond of).

sandy2_2

If the hat is very floppy and you want an upturned brim all the way round, oversew round the edge of the brim with some button thread or fine string and carefully draw it up when you`ve got all the way round (oversew , a bit like combining tacking and hemming stitch along the hat edge) I did this at the week end and it worked a treat.
Alternatively you could pin the front of the brim back to the crown of the hat with a pretty brooch, bit like a 20s style hat
Some hats have a fine wire around the brim so you can bend brim into whatever shape/angle you need...I did this with my witches halloween hat to give it a more glamorous touch!!

lostinrates

Gosh thank you all. I might try the steming first, then the starching, then the glueing, then, if all else fails the oversewing! Stopping when I find the right solution!