Interesting Facts About Coat Hooks and Hangers

Clutter is one of those aspects at home we all deal with differently; some of us don’t mind having it around, even when it’s in sight, others skillfully eliminate all of it, adopting a minimalist lifestyle altogether and there are also those in between who have it and still pull off a neatly outcome.

While there have been many studies over the years, proving clutter can be bad for your health, productivity and mental focus, fact is a little clutter is more than welcome as it leads to serendipity and creativity.

If you’re part of the “in between” club, there are various furniture pieces that are designed to be of help in putting clutter away such as sideboards, ottomans and sofa beds, however if you’d like to get a solution that’s stylish and affordable welcome modern coat hooks.

Differing in sizes, shapes and materials, hooks are perfect to be used as décor items considering they can spice up the interior and help you out with the clutter. When you buy hooks such as those made of aluminium or brass you can be sure of the quality, not worrying whether they’d stand the weight or fall off as soon as you start using them.

Likewise, there are also those types of modern coat hooks that double as hands on chest of drawers, for example. Moreover you can have fun mixing and matching many of them, they all go well together regardless of their styles.

Where Did It All Begin?

For such versatile pieces that we use on a daily basis hardly do most of us think about them, their history, how and when people started using them. Well, many would argue as to who invented them, including naming Thomas Jefferson as one of the inventors of the wooden coat hangers (already famous for his other inventions), but what’s certain is Victorian fashion had everything to do with hooks and hangers.

The meticulously crafted skirts and dresses with all the ornaments on them, such as the waistbands and plaids, needed all the care in the hanging in wardrobes, hence the uses of advanced hook and hanger designs, even those for travelling created with a collapsible design.

The first known patent however goes to O. A. North of New Britain, Connecticut in 1869. This is followed by the inspiration of Albert J. Parkhouse who thanks to his colleagues’ complaints on the few hooks in the company where he worked at, Timberlake Wire and Novelty, created what we know as the wire coat hangers today in 1903 in Jackson, Michigan.

Also in Michigan, though in Grand Rapids in 1906, Meyer May was the first retailer to use wishbone hangers for his products. We’ve come a long way since then to having hooks and hangers in all sorts of designs and materials nowadays, even repurposing them for hanging bags, umbrellas, bending wire hangers for reaching unreachable objects we’ve “lost” at home and lately holding up books and tablets above the bed.

Simple design, so many uses; Can’t wait to see what’s next!