Wire coat hangers receive bad press and thats a fact.Especially if you are an ardent fan of sturdy, wooden coat hangers, like me. So here is an idea that anyone can do to make something unloved, pretty and useful again…
If you can’t crochet why not wrap the yarn around tightly, or macrame around, knotting as you go? If you can crochet read on…
This is a deceptively simple crochet project. It has helped me with two obsessions that are dear to my heart, ie. recycling and making room in my wardrobe!
Wire Coat Hangers: the project’s backstory
I experienced one of those eureka moments, when I was returning freshly ironed t-shts to ‘his’ side of the wardrobe. There amongst the shirts. I spotted a forlorn, two wire coat hangers. Can you imagine my horror? I reached out to grab it, intending to dump it in the recycling bin. When I had an idea…
You will need:
Wire coat hangers (sturdy ones are best)
Scraps of chunky yarn. I have used both boodles (t-sht yarn) and some super chunky, soft and fluffy yarn from woollymahoosive
A large crochet hook, suitable for the yarn weight. Anything from 10mm-20mm is fine for a chunky yarn.
Plus the usual scissors and tapestry needle, although with huge yarn it is best to tuck it in with your fingers.
The Pattern.
You are double crocheting (SC for United States) completely around the entire hanger frame.
Method.
Start by making a slip knot on your hook to start, then pass the yarn around the hanger, yarn over hook and pull through both loops. Pull tight to keep the tension neat. Continue in this way until the hanger is covered. Weave in ends with either a tapestry needle or your fingers. At the tip of the hanger hook, hand wind the yarn tail around and over itself before weaving in to cover the sharp wire end..
You could add a large button or a flower as a ‘garnish’ but I prefer to let the yarn do the talking by keeping them plain.
More Ideas.
These hangers look fabulous when used to display a pretty blouse or summer dress? Why don’t you use a picture hook to display the garment on your bedroom wall like a piece of Art.
I have written about another chunky yarn project here. I made a crochet pet bed from Sarah Shrimpton’s new book.
There are more diy hanger projects for you here if you like coat hangers as much as I do you might find it useful…?
A little Fact…
I originally published this post in 2015, but like it so much I wanted to update it to include the super chunky yarn trend and share with any new readers that may have missed it first time around!
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