Suede items not only look good, but also create a feeling of warmth and comfort. This equally applies to hats, gloves, shoes, and bags. Suede hats in any design are always beautiful, warm and comfortable. But many citizens are wary of such purchases, fearing that in snowy or rainy weather a suede hat may lose its appearance and look calloused, become hard and uncomfortable to wear. Yes, suede can present unwanted surprises and lose its attractiveness. Therefore, we decided to tell you how to clean a suede hat so that the item will serve you for a long time.
Necessary care items
In shoe departments you can easily find a special device - a brush for cleaning suede. If in your wardrobe you have not only a hat, but also suede boots, buy 2 brushes. They differ from clothing and shoe brushes in a special device. On one side, they have a short pile of natural bristles with metal inserts, and on the other, an improvised rubber brush designed to provide the final shine.
Most often, such a brush is quite sufficient for cleaning suede at home. It is easy to remove ordinary dirt with the side of the brush where the bristles are located, and then walk over the surface with a rubber coating. Hand movements during final cleaning should be directed in one direction so that the suede does not change shades.
Sometimes, at home, your suede hat may become subject to other contaminants. A greasy stain was accidentally “planted” or the hat became very dusty from long-term storage on an open shelf. What to do? Will it be possible to give the headdress its original appearance? Or will you have to spend money on a new purchase? Let’s say right away - don’t rush to spend money, spend half an hour, and wear a suede hat with pleasure.
How to clean suede shoes
Boots, boots, and shoes made of suede look expensive, provide comfort to your feet, and are durable with proper care. And it involves the use of special cleaning and care products intended only for suede.
After purchase, the pair is cleaned with a special brush and treated with a water-repellent aerosol. This preserves the color of the products, makes subsequent cleaning easier, and extends the wear period.
Remember:
- Suede does not like water. Try not to walk in slushy weather. Do not soak your shoes, do not pour tap water on them, or buy water-based products.
- It is possible to spot wet the contaminated area with a moistened sponge.
- Dirt can be cleaned only on dry shoes.
- Use different brushes for dark and light shoes.
- Do not store shoes in the sun.
- Regularly clean the pile from dust and treat it with special products.
Fighting greasy stains
The history of the occurrence of a greasy stain on a hat is always accidental. But the fight against him is simple. Moreover, the sooner you start eliminating fat, the better the result will be.
- Immediately after a grease stain is discovered, sprinkle it thickly with coarse table salt.
- Rub the salt in thoroughly and leave the cap for 5-10 minutes so that the salt fights with the fat.
- Shake the hat thoroughly.
- Take a piece of white wheat bread and wipe the former stain - it will come off easily.
If these manipulations at home do not produce results, you will have to look for aviation gasoline. The product perfectly removes dirt and traces of grease not only from suede, but also from fur items. By the way, it is sold in hardware stores. Buy a bottle and easily treat the greasy stain. Afterwards, blot the treated area with a dry towel and ventilate the hat.
You shouldn't be afraid of the smell of gasoline. Aviation gasoline is very volatile and disappears quickly.
Types of pollution
- With prolonged use, some areas begin to become shiny.
- The carelessness of the owner leads to the appearance of greasy stains. The same ones arise from constant contact of the material with the skin of the owner.
- On a wet suede item that is not dried in time, whitish stains appear, and after a while, mold appears.
- Reagents used to combat snow on city streets leave salt stains on suede shoes.
- The lining of hats turns yellow from sweat and perfume.
- It can be difficult to get rid of protein stains (blood, milk, etc.).
- Dust accumulated on the fibers gives the suede item a dull gray color.
- Before cleaning, you will have to degrease suede that has been damaged by glue, ink, or oil paint.
The sooner you start work, the better the result will be.
Removing old and shiny stains
From wearing for a long time, your favorite headdress can become shiny around the edges. The view is not very attractive. Of course, if you clean your hat in a timely manner, unsightly shiny spots will not appear on it. More often it happens the other way around - all hands do not reach. Take some time and finally get to cleaning. You will need:
- Ammonia in the amount of 10 ml. If you buy a box of ampoules, you will spend everything, so it is better to buy ammonia in a bottle.
- Pure water – 40 ml. It is convenient to measure the amount for preparing the working solution with a regular medical syringe.
Mix water with ammonia, soak a cloth in the solution and treat shiny stains. Then go over them with a weak solution of vinegar - 5 ml per 200 ml of water.
Finish this double treatment by wiping with a damp cloth and drying thoroughly. When the headdress is completely dry, you won’t even believe that there were ever shiny spots on it!
Cleaning the shiny edges
Often, as a result of use, the edges of the cap acquire an untidy, “greasy” appearance. At home, a solution of ammonia in water, made in the proportion of 10 ml of alcohol to 40 ml of water, will help restore them to their former purity. You should soak a cotton swab in the liquid, and then thoroughly clean all dirty areas.
After this treatment, the suede material will need to be wiped with a vinegar solution (5 ml of vinegar per 200 ml of water), finally cleaned with a damp cloth and combed.
The most insidious spots
Any manipulations that you apply at home may be unsuccessful if the suede hat is fairly worn out and stains have formed on it for a very long time. Do the following as resuscitation measures:
- Mix 10 ml of ammonia with starch and clean old stains with this mixture.
- Then prepare the following solution - 10 grams of soda and 100 grams of low-fat milk and clean the entire headdress with a soft cotton swab.
- Finish the treatment with a well-wrung out damp cloth.
- Air dry the item.
- Apply a water-repellent spray to the hat and dry again.
Such simple techniques will help return things to a well-groomed, neat appearance. Good luck getting creative with your suede cleaning!
How do you like the article?
Features of cleaning light suede
There are several methods for cleaning white suede.
Peroxide and ammonia . Stir a teaspoon of these liquids in a glass of warm water, moisten a cotton pad or sponge with the resulting solution, and carefully process it. Afterwards, hang the item or place the shoes in a draft to remove the smell.
Milk, soda and ammonia . This method perfectly helps to cope with dirt on any light-colored suede items: clothes, accessories, shoes. By gently cleaning the material, milk softens the fibers.
How to clean a felt hat at home
Felt hats are a striking item of clothing. But over time and from prolonged wear they become dirty. They cannot be washed. We choose methods and means for cleaning a felt hat at home.
- The hat needs to be shaken from time to time to free it from dust. You can clean it with a soft horsehair brush. You can use a brush with artificial, but soft bristles, or take a piece of tape or a sticky roller for cleaning clothes. If necessary, use a vacuum cleaner with a small attachment. Sometimes you want to freshen up your hat a little. In this case, ordinary steam will help. To do this, you need to hold it for several minutes over a boiling kettle or pan of boiling water at a distance of 25-30 cm from them. Comb the pile with a soft brush.
- If a hat is an element of your everyday wardrobe, then you need to carefully monitor its cleanliness. A grayish-white coating may appear on the fibers. This is road dust. Steam will help again. Bring it to the boiling kettle. The steam that rises will moisten it a little and then comb the pile with a brush.
- If you see dirty places on the hat, then wipe them with a mixture that includes ordinary salt, a saturated ammonia solution (ammonia) and white vinegar. Take 1 part salt and two parts vinegar and an ammonia solution. It can be used to clean stains both inside and outside the hat. Take a piece of clean light cloth, moisten it with the solution and clean it. We rinse the cloth periodically to prevent dirt from spreading throughout the material. At the end of the procedure, the pile needs to be combed and dried.
- A mixture of water and ammonia in equal proportions can easily remove dirt from sweat and dust inside the hat. Moisten a piece of hard cloth and thoroughly clean problem areas. Ammonia perfectly cleanses stains of various origins. Do everything carefully so as not to get your headdress too wet and not to deform it. The mixture can also be made with a solution of ammonia (ammonia) combined with semolina or bran.
- If some areas are scuffed to a shine, fine-grit sandpaper may help. If you don’t have it on hand, salt will do; sprinkle it on these areas and rub it well with a clothes brush. The only condition is that the hat must be completely dry.
To clean a dark-colored hat, you can use a decoction of tobacco. Need 1 tbsp. l. Place dry leaves in 1 liter of boiling water and leave. Take a clean rag, soak it in this broth and wipe thoroughly. After cleaning, the hat should be ventilated to remove the smell of tobacco.
If you catch a whitewashed wall with a hat, it will leave gray-white stains on it, which are not easy to get rid of. Cleaning with a brush soaked in water will not help. The streaks will stretch even further across the material. Vinegar added to water in a 1:1 ratio will correct the situation. If there is no vinegar, lemon juice in the same proportion will help. Start working from the edge of the hat and towards the center. When finished, wipe the stain with a clean, damp cloth and dry.
How to whiten
The appearance of yellowness on light or white hat material should be avoided. A solution consisting of hydrogen peroxide and ammonia will help. Take three times more peroxide. Take a clothes brush and, soaking it in the solution, thoroughly clean all the yellow areas.
If there are a lot of yellow stains, manna or bran will help. They are rubbed in from above, from the outside, and then need to be carefully shaken out. The yellow streaks should disappear.
If you use a stain remover, do not forget to look at the packaging for information on which fabrics it is intended for. For colored materials there are some means, for white there are others.
You can experiment with cleaning white hats if they are made of thick felt. Dry clean an exquisite hat made of thin material.
How to remove raindrops
Felt hats do not like moisture. Their shape may change, and whitish spots may appear. Shake it off first. Clean the felt hat with a medium-hard brush, moistening it with water.
Sometimes cleaning with just water doesn't get rid of all the problems. If the hat is dusty and dirty, and even caught in the rain, use a mild soap solution to clean it. Washing powder or just soap is not suitable. They take a long time to wash off. But for a hat made of felt material, this is bad. It may become deformed.
You can buy cleaning products in stores. The Amway uniform has been popular among customers for a long time. Its universal cleaning products do not harm the environment and are gentle on the material. The cleanser, for example, LOC contains coconut oil with amino acids. It is very economical and leaves no streaks at all. Perfectly cleans all types of stains. Use according to the information on the packaging. Usually it is enough to add a few drops to water and apply this mixture to the cap for a few minutes and quickly rinse with clean water with light movements. Shake off any remaining moisture.
If the hat is a little damp, fill it tightly with newspaper and dry it in a ventilated area. To prevent deformation during drying, it is recommended to stretch it onto a glass jar, a ball of a suitable size or an inflatable balloon.
The tousled lint can be held briefly and not very closely over a pan of boiling water. Then smooth it out with a soft brush.
Sometimes marks appear from drying. It seems that it is not a stain, but the appearance is no longer the same. We moisten a stiff brush with water and carefully lift the bristles. The prints disappear.
Fighting traces of fat
Such stains can be caused not only by food. It can also appear from contact with facial skin.
If the stain appeared a long time ago and the material is saturated with grease, purified gasoline will help. Wet a clean cloth and wipe thoroughly. Do not moisturize too much, otherwise the pile will be tousled.
Grease stains disappear under the influence of a mixture consisting of ammonia and water in the same ratio.
Denatured and ammonia alcohol in the same proportion destroys the most problematic stains.
A mixture of purified gasoline and potato starch, which is applied to greasy areas and forgotten until it dries, has the same properties. After the procedure, the cap is shaken out. If there is still some left, then brush the felt hat with a brush moistened in a solution with the addition of citric acid or juice until the stains are completely removed.
Among the folk methods of cleaning fresh grease stains, this is also used - a piece of dry rye bread. If it is not available, salt will help by pouring it onto the stain.
If stains are difficult to clean, you can try stain removers like Vanish, which are available for both colored and white materials. Be careful. Test their reaction inside the hat first.
Hats made from white materials are cleaned with a thick mixture of potato starch and refined gasoline, which is rubbed into the stain and left to dry. After completion, the mixture is shaken, tapping from the inside. The pile is combed with a brush.
We store it correctly - we use it for a long time
It is advisable to store a felt hat in a thick paper box. Place the inside of the hat tightly with crumpled paper and wrap it with cloth.
The hat can be hung on the hook for daily wear. If it hangs for a long time, it will lose its shape.
Protect your hat from excessive moisture. It does not immediately get wet, but dampness and high humidity are very harmful to it. If it is raining or snowing outside, cover it with an umbrella.
If you happen to get it wet, first shake it to remove any remaining wet drops, wipe it with a brush in the direction of the pile and dry it by stretching it over a three-liter jar.
If the lint sticks out in different directions, hold it over a boiling pan for 2-3 minutes and comb the lint with a soft brush.
Additional Tricks
If the cap is clean, raindrops or snow are easily destroyed if held over boiling water. Smooth the slightly moistened pile of the cap in its direction with a brush.
A hat that has dust on it is first cleaned with a brush, and then held over a pan of boiling water and the lint combed out.
To destroy elements of wear and bends, use both sandpaper and salt. Pour onto a dry stain and rub with a piece of soft cloth, then shake out thoroughly.
To prevent drying marks from appearing on heating devices, dry in a ventilated room.
If the color of the hat has changed or faded, it can be restored. Restorative spray paints, which are sold for suede or nubuck materials, are suitable. You just need to find the right shade.
If after cleaning the stain still remains and it is located in a visible place, you can decorate this place with some kind of decoration: or appliqué, you can even change them periodically. And the headdress will look different every time.
Proper drying
As already mentioned, suede clothing should not be wrung out after washing. To remove excess water, the clothes only need to be lightly squeezed with your hands in several places.
Dry things horizontally on a flat surface. A dress or jacket hanging on a hanger will certainly stretch out and lose its shape under the weight of absorbed water.
Drying near heating devices - radiators, heaters, heaters, and even more so on their surface is strictly prohibited.
To prevent shoes or gloves from losing their shape, you need to put crumpled absorbent paper inside, changing it periodically to speed up drying.
