How To Shrink A Hat Band
Hold the top of the hat under water for about five minutes.
How to shrink a hat band. Do not get the brim wet just the top of the hat. If it should only shrink a little use warm water or even cold water. The pressure from the other clothes can help to shrink the cap faster.
Here are two other things to try. Lots of salt in the sweat makes for some good shrinkage. Then set the hat in the sink making sure the elastic band or sweatband around the brim is submerged.
Add double-sided sticky foam pads inside the hat between the sweat band and the hat itself. Remove the backing and place the hat sizers or hat sizing tape back inside of the hat band and secure them Make any necessary adjustments to the hat sizers as needed. Hold your hat over a pot of boiling water until it is damp and then put it on your head or on a foam head or hat stand in your size until it dries completely.
Check on the hat every 10 minutes or so to make sure its OK and try it on. Pull the hat onto your head and leave it on for 20 minutes. Take the hat off when the fit feels comfortable.
Fill the water in the sprayer or a misting bottle. Unlike double-sided tape which could ruin the sweatband by tearing at the material hat sizing tape only has adhesive on one side with a foam strip on the other. Then put in a non-bleach laundry detergent whatever the recommended amount depending on your load size.
Use water as hot as you can get from the tap. Usually it will shrink up to two sizes but that depends on how much water and heat it is exposed to. Use a medium heat setting.