PANAMA HAT CARE & ROLLING GUIDE

A genuine Panama hat is famed for its supple weave and flexibility. Below is a series of step by step guides to rolling hats, as well as tips for looking after your hat. If your hat is to last a lifetime, you need to take care of it. So we’ve put together some simple tips and guidance to keep your hat in good condition. As a result, your Panama hat will be your trusty travel companion for many years to come.
Hat Care & Rolling Pachacuti
SHOP HAT TUBE

Step 1

Firstly, fold the Panama hat in front of you, with the crown running from left to right.

Hat Care & Rolling Pachacuti

Step 2

Next, carefully push out the crown then, fold the hat along the crease. One side should curve into the other, forming a bowl-like shape that will begin to roll quite easily.

Hat Care & Rolling Pachacuti

Step 3

Gently roll the hat into itself. Place a finger in the inside of the crown to ensure you don’t roll too tightly.

Hat Care & Rolling Pachacuti

Step 4

Then place a loose rubber band or string around the hat to hold it in position. Finally, place the hat in one of our Pachacuti branded hat tubes, or another suitably-sized tube for transportation.

Please note: Wide brim hats will not fit into our hat tubes.

Hat Care & Rolling Pachacuti
Hat Tubes

This lightweight cardboard tube is for carrying and storing our rollable Panama hat whilst travelling. It is therefore sized to fit our rollable hats.

Please note: For the longevity of your Panama hat, we do not recommend storing it in the tube for any longer than the duration of travel.

 

Hat Tubes
Rolling not folding

Although Panama hats are flexible and can be rolled without difficulty, they are a beautiful handwoven item and should be treated with care. Avoid folding, scrunching up or mistreating your Panama hat as this will soon cause the straw to crack and damage the weave.

Handy Tip: In intense heat, the straw can dry out and become brittle. Attempts to roll hats in such a condition could result in them cracking! You can humidify your hat by steaming it over a boiling kettle or misting it with warm water.

Please Note: Standard and Select grade hats are less supple and flexible and thus more prone to cracking because of their coarse weave. Pachacuti recommends our customers choose one of our Panama hat styles more suitable for rolling, such as our flexible Fine Llano and Brisa grade weaves or our more robust Crochet and Twisted weave styles.

Store your hat unrolled

You should only roll your Panama hat for travelling and not store it rolled for long periods. The longer you leave your hat rolled, the longer it will take to return to its original shape. Steaming a misshapen hat can help it to regain its shape, see our care page for details.

Hat Care Guide
The Fiddly Fedora

The Fedora hat shape has a sharp ‘pinch’ at the front of the crown and can be prone to cracking when dried over years of use. If you take care when rolling it and keep the hat supple by humidifying, you should be able to keep rolling your Panama hat without a problem.

It’s a sun hat, not a rain hat

Do not wear your Panama hat in the rain because the excessive moisture will cause your hat to lose its shape. If your hat does become wet, let it air dry as close to the original shape as possible and then follow the instructions for reshaping your hat.
 
Please note: keep your hat away from damp and central heating during the drying process.

Handling Your Hat

Try not to pinch the front of the crown too much because this may cause it to crack. We strongly recommend picking up your Panama hat by the brim or by cupping the crown with an open palm. This helps redistribute the tensile pressure to the strongest parts of the hat, protecting the crown.

If Your Hat Loses Its Shape

If your Panama hat becomes misshapen, you should be able to get it back to its original shape. Lightly steam it over a boiling kettle and then shape it by hand back to its original form. Following the reshaping, you can use a blow dryer on a low heat setting to dry your hat. Make sure you are holding its shape while you dry it. We also recommend leaving your hat to air dry but advise you keep it away from damp and central heating.

If the brim has become misshapen, you may iron the brim. Set the iron to a medium to low heat setting and iron under a slightly damp cloth. Please note: High heat iron settings can cause burn marks on your hat. After ironing, place your Panama hat onto an appropriately shaped object such as a bowl. Leave it for a while to regain its shape.

Over time, your hat will develop natural characteristics from your adventures together. Should your Panama require a little more attentive care, feel free to contact us and check out our restoration service.

Restoration Service
Cleaning Your Panama

If your Panama hat becomes dirty, try to remove the dirt by lightly dusting it with a dry cloth. Please note: Don’t scrub too hard because this may damage the weave. If this doesn’t work, try using a moist facial wipe or cleansing wipe. This should remove most marks, although again, care should be taken not to rub or scrub too hard. We advise that you do not use soap and water or oil based wipes.

Hat Restoration

Has your Panama hat seen better days? We offer a hat restoration service in our Leek store. Please get in touch with us and we’ll see whether we can restore it for you.

 

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