As long as YLF has closet inspo, can we talk about hangers? - YouLookFab Forum

Category

General

As long as YLF has closet inspo, can we talk about hangers?

April

Veteran

Angie's tidy new closet no doubt has us all trying to do better and to this end I have a question.

What hangers work best for you? In our coat closet, we use wooden hangers and have no problem there. In my bedroom closets, I use slimline flocked hangers for most items and padded satin for jackets and a few knits. In the laundry room, I use the tubular white plastic ones.

My issue is that the great majority of my flocked hangers have that little hook in front, for suspending another hanger from. The hooks are kind of annoying, so I wanted to tap the wise minds of YLF to see if there is some recent wonder in the hanger world?

Should I replace the hooked hangers with the plain flocked kind? Or is there something better?

This post has 2 photos. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

General

24 replies

Latest reply was from unfrumped

AndiB

Veteran

Oh I LOVE the little hooks, and use them to compose outfits. I've taken wire hangers and unwound them to create a loop on the bottom, and use the hanging curve to slide onto the hook, which allows the bottom (pants or skirt) to hang about where it would on my body. My flocked hangers do not all have the hook. The hooks also allow me to hang 2 or 3 blazers descending down, saving a TON of closet space.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

The hooks wouldn't work for me either, so I get it, April. Horses for courses, though - always. If the hooks work for others - milk it

Flocked and velvet hangers cause too much friction for me personally, so I use plastic. Easier when things are more slippery. Better for my arthritic thumbs.

Sooo, we use five types to hanger very deliberately. They are carefully chosen:

1. Wooden hangers in our coat closet, and in Greg's shirt closet.

2. White tube hangers for my hanging.

3. Glass hangers for my heavier hanging, and in the laundry room.

4. Glass clip hangers for my bottoms.

5. Steel hangers for Greg's bottoms.

Hope that helps!

Suz

(website)

Veteran

We have wooden hangers for coats and I use the black slimline velvet covered ones for almost everything else in my closet. In laundry we use the white plastic. Mr. Suz uses a variety of things for his stuff. We also have pant/ skirt hangers that hold multiple pairs.

I've never seen the ones with the little hook! It looks both useful and potentially annoying. I like the slim regularity of the black ones I have. But they can't take anything very heavy.

Not much help, am I? Oh well....

RachelNZ

Like others I have wooden hangers for coats and all the same black flocked ones for tops and a mix of skirt/pant hangers with the clips. I used to have plastic hangers for tops but because I always remove the little strings inside I found they slipped off, so like the way they stay on the flocked hangers better - although as Angie notes there are pros to them sliding off more easily.

I've not seen hangers with the little hook and can see how they could be annoying or useful depending on your wardrobe situation!

JAileen

Veteran

For my closet I use the plastic tubular ones. We also have heavy duty plastic ones for coats. The pictures show ones I’ve bought for hanging up wet clothes in the bathroom. In the first one, they have the little hooks and they are very annoying. In the second one, they kept coming apart so I had to donate them. In the third one, they are fine for pants. I just ordered more plastic ones.

This post has 3 photos. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

I am so impressed by the hanger thought on this thread. I use flocked hangers so I can squeeze as much as possible into my closet. We also have plastic hangers that I prefer for hanging wet clothes but will use the flocked ones if necessary. I also have some wooden clamped ones for skirts. Following with interest.

Runcarla

Veteran

I prefer old school wire hangers in my closet, with the metal/plastic clamp hangers for pants and skirts. Regular white plastic tubular hangers in the laundry room, heavy duty plastic tubular hangers in the coat closets.

Sloper

Veteran

I also have tried the flocked thin hangers. I HATE that little hook - the hangers always get caught on each other. Also, I don’t like that the hook doesn’t swivel.

I like the white tubular hangers (although no swivel). The round edges seem kinder to nice blouses. And old-fashioned plastic with swivel hooks and notches for sleeveless tops and those sewn-in lingerie ribbons. And wooden hangers, or special thicker curved plastic hangers for coats and blazers.

Roberta

Veteran

I have the random thought that the hangers you like, at least for dresses and tops, may depend on your size. I have quite broad shoulders and usually wear a 16 or extra large up top, and I need those flocked hangers to keep all of my things on the hangers and not puddling in little heaps on the floor. I agree wholeheartedly with Angie that the plastic ones are easier on arthritic hands, but my tops simply won't stay on them.

Laurie

Veteran

BIG topic between me and my husband. At one point about 5 yrs ago, probably inspired here, I switched to all flocked, flat traditional hangers, with the exception of rounded hangers, for knits, that had a sort of no slip rubbery texture to them. My husband hates them all - a lot! Recently I have substituted 90% of the flocked hangers for rounded, flat plastic hangers, with the exception of hanging sleeveless tops on those flocked hangers so they don't slide off.

Lisa

Veteran

I use wooden hangers in the coat closet and velvet hangers in the clothes closet. I have flocked plastic hangers that I use for air drying wet clothes that I don't hang on a drying rack.

Indigoprint

Veteran

Just asking, is there evidence that proves the velvet hangers allow for more clothing?
just curious... not argumentive
I use plastic tubular and wooden for coats.

cat2

Veteran

I use flat velvet hangers. I have some that have clips for skirts. I can definitely get more clothing into a closet with the velvet.

April

Veteran

IP - the flat velvet hangers take up less space than the plastic tubular ones because the part that goes on the rod is a metal hook - much thinner than the tube. And the velvet part is maybe one-third the thickness of the tube, so once you have 30 hangers or so, it adds up to real space.

I am spoiled for closet space in what I must now admit is a dressing room. Because this sounds overly grand, I usually just call it my closet. It contains two closets with full-length space for dresses and long pieces; two that are double-hung with high and lower rods for tops, jackets, and pants over a hanger; one with tilted shoe shelves. There is also a built-in dresser, abundant open shelving, and some smaller closed cupboards.

Mr. A has his own, differently arranged dressing room across from mine. This works well since he can do whatever he wants in that space regarding hangers. He prefers wooden for everything, including lightweight items like dress shirts.

Of course my own space is way better since it has two windows with window seats and a full length wall mirror. I am in the midst of a re-org and it's kind of a mess but if I promise pictures, it may inspire me to get moving.

delurked

Veteran

I'm glad to see I'm not the only person who prefers plastic hangers to velvet/flocked ones. I tried to switch to them but hated it, and I was glad I only purchased a dozen to test it out.

Randomly, I prefer my older plastic hangers to the ones they currently sell in target and such these days. The older ones I own seem slightly larger and somehow are shaped in a way I prefer more.

kkards

Veteran

Like bras and footwear hangers are such a personal thing.
I tried the velvety hangers, with the extra pieces without them, just did not like them. They always felt vaguely dirty to me because they seemed to attract lint and fuzz. Of course it’s clear from reading above many people have a different experience.
I’ve used plastic tubular hangers I like them, but wouldn’t go out of my way to buy them.
I’m slowly converting to these coated hangers which seem to really well for me.

This post has 2 photos. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

April

Veteran

kk - I have never seen that style before! Intriguing.

delurked - I know exactly what you mean. The older ones are more robust (therefore a touch thicker - good to know if space is tight) and generally preferable, in my view. I donated all our skinnier ones a while back.

Indigoprint

Veteran

Thanks April.

Staysfit

Veteran

I have flocked hangers but they don’t have the annoying hooks. I have no clue where I purchased them, they’re pretty old. Maybe Bed, Bath and Beyond. Maybe Kohls.

DonnaF

Veteran

And I LOVE the flocked hangers with hooks because they enable me to stuff more in my closet! Haven't been able to find ones with hooks for quite awhile, though. The flocking enables me to hang my sweaters and other knits cross-wise since I don't have drawers and am too short for shelves. My regular sweaters barely fit but I have one drawer for the oversized ones.

Carol

(website)

Veteran

So...I love my way, which I read about in an organization book or article, something like that. And what I have is all basic wooden hangers, bought in bunches years apart. And because they are so basic, they basically match.

The point the author was making was that having all of the same hanger, preferably wood, makes you feel so much better than having a mish-mosh of different hangers, and I agree. This basic, nice hanger is all I need. And the only way I would need different would be if I had a special condition, like a very small space.

(and if it is not obvious, you toss/recycle the ones that come back from dry cleaning).

This post has 1 photo. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Oh, I hate those little hooks too — I somehow wound up with some of them years ago and changed them out for plain ones. I do use and love the simple slim velvet flocked hangers for my tops and dresses — I think most of mine came from Home Goods or TJMaxx. We use wooden hangers for coats, my husband’s items, and my jackets. Wooden clip hangers for my skirts and a few trousers. Works for us!

I recently bought more wooden hangers with extra shoulder width for my husband — the kind that you’d typically use for suit jackets. He likes his nicer tee shirts hung on those. He’s a tall guy with large shirts so the extra support for shoulder seam structure is good for his items to retain their shape.

In the laundry room, I have a couple of random plastic tubular hangers (I don’t even remember how I managed to acquire so few), and a collection of plastic hangers that have come with clothing purchases over the years. They are surprisingly sturdy for my drip-dry items and no big loss if one breaks. I hang dry a lot of my laundry so I keep a pretty large supply of these.

This post has 2 photos. Photos uploaded by this member are only visible to other logged in members.

If you aren't a member, but would like to participate, please consider signing up. It only takes a minute and we'd love to have you.

April

Veteran

Carol, I have to say I too think uniformity of hangers is *so* pleasing.

Maybe because I grew up in a house where every hanger was either a sadly misshapen (from hanging heavy coats on it) flimsy wire one, or a sharply broken (same reason) flimsy plastic one that came with a garment from a discount clothing store. If you weren't careful, you could cut your hand and bleed onto your clothes.

Sometime in the mid-1970s, the at-home moms on our block started wrapping the flimsy wire ones in 100% acrylic yarn (all the nasty colors from the discount bin) to keep them from tangling. In 2012, I went to my parents' house to help them sort through their out-of-control junk and I tell you, those 1976 fuzzed-over yarn hangers were still there. We went to Costco and I guided my dad to buy a hundred slim flocked ones (no hooks!) while my mother kicked and screamed. He was so happy, and she too realized how much better it looked when it was all uniform.

unfrumped

Veteran

I e put this in previous hanger conversations, but I use a plastic CURVED hanger by Olka from Container Store , which they no longer carry, I think. Like Angie, I needed the smoother slide of plastic as I find the flocked ones too grabby, and I needed the curve as I hang knits and would get shoulder bumps. But then I added little flocked stickies to the ends to keep slippery blouses in. Very custom!

But fir some “ basics” like an assortment of layering T’s that seem to last me forever but I use occasionally for just the right color, I use some “ youth” sized flocked hangers because then I can squish them more together- for example, I won’t use a dozen or so SS layering T’s for maybe 6 months of the year, so I swap them to the guest room closet.
You’d think I would want to cram as much as possible sine my wardrobe is still too big, and I hang almost everything. But I kind the spacing that the plastic hangers require.

Plus I also bought actual spacers called Xangars, little foam rings, to create more separation/ limit my main closet rod. Go figure.

For pants I use 2 things— clamp hangers for ceasing pants including all “ nice “ pants that coukd get crushed or more wrinkly or even are slithery, like Athleta Brooklyns; then open- ended bar hangers for jeans. That is partly because the configuration of my closet is double rods plus one end of fuller length that doesn’t go all the way to floor because I use that bit of open space for something else. My preferred ergonomics for removing/ replacing pants is the clamp hangers, so if I had the right space I’d hang them all that way. But I do the nicer- pants seasonal swap ones to extra closet also, where I could grab again if needed.