I remember a friend in high school making fun of her mother for reusing tinfoil and thinking to myself, “What a good idea.” I grew up in New England, and Yankee thriftiness is part of my DNA—which perhaps explains my love of doctored everyday objects. I collect white cotton pillowcases that Depression-era brides embroidered modestly on the edges. I love suitcases that someone long ago improved with travel decals. And one of my favorite Remodelista posts is Justine’s DIY closet makeover in which she wrapped her wire clothes hangers in a layer of muslin to keep the clothes from slipping; see $10 and a Day.
On a recent brief stay in Madrid, I was excited to see the same hanger technique in use at two of the city’s chicest shops. So before you toss those skinny metal dry cleaner hangers, take a look at what you can turn them into with a bit of scrap fabric. Here, three ways to wrap and elevate them.
1. All-White Hangers à la Justine
Above: Made from cotton muslin hand-cut in half-inch-wide, yard-long strips, Justine’s hangers have a ballet ribbon-like elegance. Above: Starting at the neck, the wrapped muslin is simply double knotted in place. Justine points out, “This project is all about recycling: an old sheet, pillowcase, or even a worn T-shirt will do.” Good fabric shears also come in handy. For detailed instructions, go to Justine’s DIY Closet Makeover.
2. Pez Madrid’s Patterned Approach
Above: Pez (which means “Fish”) has two locations in lively Malasana: one devoted to fashion and a newer outpost showcasing household design. At the former, owners Beatriz Mezquriz and Patricia de Salas create cloth-covered hangers several times a year to go with their seasonal palettes. Shown here: “The ice cream colors of spring-summer.” Above: Beatriz and Patricia buy remnants at the fabric and sewing stores near Madrid’s Plaza Mayor and Puerta del Sol. “Many of these shops have leftovers that they sell at a good price. It’s hard to tell when they date from; some look like they’re from the eighties, some older than that. For wrapping hangers, what’s important is that the fabrics have small patterns, so that you can appreciate them in such a thin stripe.” Above: The fabric is hand-cut in long, two-centimeter-wide strips and secured to the neck of the hanger with a few stitches: “We sew the fabric at the top, wrap it around the hanger, and sew it again at the neck making a triangle. If we run out of fabric, we stitch another length to the end of the first, and try to hide it.” Above: A tip from our book, Remodelista: The Organized Home: “Use matching hangers. You’ll fit more in and your closet will look much tidier.” (For more secrets to an organized closet, see pages 98-121.)
3. String-Wrapped Hangers at Do Design
Above: Artist Lucia Ruiz-Rivas neatly winds twine around the hangers at Do Design, her concept shop and cafe in downtown Madrid’s Chueca neighborhood. Note that while the other DIYers leave the wire hook exposed, Lucia wraps the whole hanger. She uses a variety of string—”the stiffer, the better”—including hemp twine (shown here) and Do’s Red and White Cotton Packing String. Above: Lucia uses a little piece of masking tape to secure the twine at the tip of the hanger, then tightly rolls her way around. Above: Lucia ties off the cord at the neck of the hanger with a simple knot. “You can’t know how much twine you’ll need,” she notes, “so instead of cutting a length, it’s best to use the whole roll and go with it until the end.”
When you register as a free Member of the Remodelista family of websites (Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home), you gain access to all current posts plus 10 archived posts per month, our internal bookmarking tool, and the community bulletin board.
Access 10 archived posts (older than one year) per month on each site
Use of our internal bookmark tool, so you can save products, posts, and other pages for quick reference
Access to our community bulletin board so you can ask and answer design-related questions
Unlimited access to the Product Catalogs, Design Travel sources, and Architect & Designer Directory listings
Choose from our ten newsletters to keep up with the latest on the sites
Or Subscribe for Maximum Value!
For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.
Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
×
Subscribe to the Remodelista family of websites
For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.
Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
×
Sorry! As a registered member you get 10 free posts from our archive (posts more than a year old) every 30 days. You have reached your limit for this 30-day period. If you would like to access unlimited posts from the archive (ad free, too), become a subscriber today, and keep reading as many articles as you want.
Full Access Individual Subscription
Benefits include:
Unlimited access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home sites
Ad-free browsing environment
Unrestricted access to 30,000+ archived posts
Receive the full-text daily newsletters
All features that Members have access to
Annual subscribers pay just 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
Sorry! You have reached your limit of three (3) free posts from our archive every 30 days. You can increase this to 10 posts by joining as a free Member, or read unlimited posts with no ads by becoming a paid Subscriber.
Subscribe to the Remodelista family of websites
For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.
Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
Become a Member at no charge
When you register as a free Member of the Remodelista family of websites (Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home), you gain access to all current posts plus 10 archived posts per month, our internal bookmarking tool, and the community bulletin board.
Have a Question or Comment About This Post?
Start the Conversation