Shoe Hangers
So a little not so know fact about me is that I have a TON of shoes, and no closet space to keep them. My organizing consists of stacking them on top of each other just so they will fit on the shelves, and it makes it impossible for me to remember what I have. It’s messy, it’s annoying, and it’s a little embarrassing. Here is a little before picture…
Since making my closet bigger is sadly not an option, I had to come up with something to organize this mess. When I came across this picture on pintrest of a way to hang shoes I was amazed, this is what I needed! I followed many links to this tutorial from here. Simply put, I didn’t like that this tutorial had all the hangers separate, it seemed like a waste of space to me. So I adapted it slightly so that the hangers stack off each other, to fit my different types of shoes, and my small closet space.
What you need:
- One wire hanger for each pair of shoes you will hang
- Wire cutters
- Needle nosed pliers (I borrowed a nifty little tool from my dad that had both pliers and wire cutters in one)
- Spray Paint
- Old Newspaper
- Hot glue gun
- Plastic Beads
I personally hate wire hangers so I only have plastic ones in my closet. Ever seen the movie mommy dearest? I’m a little like that, “NO WIRE HANGERS EVER!” Luckily I have some wire hangers still around the house from before my crazy switch to plastic. (Mainly because I never throw anything away). If you don’t have wire hangers, you can buy some at your local thrift store or even Walgreens has them for just a few dollars. Also, you can ask your local dry cleaner if they have recycled ones that they are getting rid of that you can have. If you buy some hangers that are already painted it saves some time and eliminate a step of this tutorial!
Start off with as many wire hangers as there are pairs of shoes to hang. I started off with 4 thinking I wouldn’t be doing very many, but then went back and hand to make more. Fortunately it is pretty easy to do so really you could do this every time you buy a new pair of shoes that can hang. Using wire cutters, cut off the bottom straight line section of the hanger so you have just the hook on the top, and some arms coming off of it.
Now, using needle nosed pliers, bend the arms of the hanger inward making a swirling shape. This turned out to be very hard for me at first because I used my hands the first time to bend it. Trust me, using the pliers works a lot better, is much less painful, and the result looks more appealing. If you mess up or don’t like your shape, simply bend it back out and try again until you get one that you like until you get the hang of it. I did a swirl shape for my sandals, but for my flats, I angled the hanger differently to hold the shoe better. (Shown in the painting step picture below)
If your hangers are already painted then you’re ready to move on. If they are the old boring type like mine, this is where we paint them! Lay your newspaper out on a hard surface where it won’t blow away. (I stacked mine on top of an old milk crate outside so it was off of the floor) Arrange all of your hangers on the newspaper and start painting. Hold the nozzle of the can 12 or so inches away and move over the hangers in a fluid motion back and for until they are evenly painted. Wait for them to dry completely before turning them over and painting the other side.
Once they are fully dry on both sides, you are ready to attach beads. The point of the beads is to cover up the sharp pointed edges on the hanger where you cut it. This way you don’t snag your shoes or cut your hands! Put some hot glue on the end of the hanger and place a bead against it, hold it in place until it will stay on its own. Do this to both sides and set aside to dry.
Once the glue is done drying you are ready to hang them! Fold the hook of one hanger around the neck of another hanger so they are stacked on top of each other. This allows you to save some closet space by hanging them by twos. Be careful that your shoes are not too heavy to be supported by the hangers. Put them in your closet with your shoes hanging and you’re done! The end result should look something like this.
Here is the finished product!
This is so cool! I am having issues with my shoe space, so I might have to try this out! Thanks for sharing Jackie =)
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