For someone who has no kids, I spend way too much time doing laundry. At this point, my husband has handed me so many "treasured" articles that are screaming to be put out of their misery forever, I'm equally proud and ashamed to admit I take a fair amount of pride in my well-honed laundry skills.
Dismayed Husband (from another room): Baby!
Skeptical Me: Yes?
DH: My hat!
SM: ...What about it?
He then appears next to me holding out this sad specimen. How did a golf hat suffer so?
(He hasn't golfed in months). What places has it been? What stories could it tell?
He's as perplexed as I am, and genuinely concerned for its health, so I sigh and promise to bring my A game in nursing it back to playing condition.
If you're ever in a similar situation (these things happen), it's actually pretty quick and easy to erase this evidence of exciting adventures.
First, evaluate your grime level. On a scale of "1 to Garbage," this is a 4 in my house. There's some sticker residue, some sweat staining, and a generous helping of good old-fashioned dirt (the underside of the brim saw the worst of it).
Step 1 is a thorough rinse under the cold faucet. Then, squirt some regular blue Dawn dish soap on an old toothbrush and give it a scrub all over.
Sidenote: Should you be sparring with someone in your household, this is a great opportunity to volunteer their oral tool as tribute. If you follow this course of action, do not, I repeat, do NOT put it back by the sink. There are several defensible reasons to commandeer a toothbrush, but poisoning your housemate is another matter entirely. This blog does not promote that.
So now you've scrubbed that hat and vowed not to settle household arguments by inflicting lasting biological damage. As you can see, we've removed most of the grime.
The grease-cutter in the Dawn took care of the adhesive stain and surface dirt, and now we're left with some general discoloration and a ring of tougher dirt. Show it no mercy.
I swear by OxiClean, but similar results can be achieved by mixing:
2 cups water
1 cup hydrogen peroxide
1 cup washing soda
Whichever you prefer, soak the article for an hour (or an afternoon).
I kept the hat submerged by weighing it down, and btw, that hand soap is awesome.
When you've finished soaking, rinse thoroughly with cool water and for best results, let it dry in the sun.
Ta-Da. Ready to suffer at the hands of my well-meaning husband once more.
