The recent years saw a huge following and demand for head gear. Fedoras, cowboy hats, felt hats, straw hats, fitted hats, hats too ridiculous to wear, and some other styles have found their places on models', celebrities', and regular guys' heads. Despite the surge of new and updated styles, still the most popular hat style is the fitted hat. From truckers to baseball hats, fitted hats were and are the hottest head gear trend until now. This popular trend however has a downside. These hats must fit your head perfectly to look good but the problem is, these hats take a long time to fit heads properly. Also, it is deemed that older looking caps look better. As not all people are willing to endure long periods of "new hat" comments, some ways to shrink and age hats faster had been improvised.

If your hat is made of wool as most fitted hats, hats for baseball, and other sports hat, you'll have no problem. Top sports fashion sites recommend shrinking your hat by using the hot water method. Wool shrinks when washed with hot water, but don't wash your hat just yet because it might cause the color to run. Instead, wet it with hot or warm water (no detergent please) and wear it. Pushing it on a round-shaped object like a bowl or a ball similar to your head size will also do the trick if you don't want to endure the dampness. Some people swear by showering with their caps on. If color starts to run, rinse with cold water quickly and dry with a hand dryer, otherwise, allow the hat to dry while wearing it. Be sure to position the hat as you would normally wear it so the hat could take on the perfect molded shape. Air the dry hat out to get rid of the damp smell but remember to avoid sunlight as the sun can bleach your hat. If you don't want to risk the color of your fitted hats, hat shrinking can be done using another method. Cutting out the mesh in the inside of your hat and taking out the board will shrink your hat significantly. However, this method is far riskier because your hat will have the tendency to change shape or be deformed. It will not only look old but can look severely battered.

The best and most effective way to get really good fitting hats is to buy a good brand with a really good fit. Break fitted hats in by wearing them often. Aside from having a good fit, your fitted hats, hats for games, and other hats will get an authentic old look and feel without deformity caused by hastening the ageing and fitting process.