Clothes Hangers Buying Guide
Preventing shirt dimples and other forms of closet chaos Clothes hangers can often seem like identical things, the sort of familiar items about which you'd say "if you've seen one, you've seen 'em all." But the little variations from one type of clothes hanger to another can make a big difference in how your clothes look, and even inspire emotions ranging from annoyance to happiness to the "no wire hangers EVER!" tirade in the Joan Crawford biographical film Mommie Dearest. Conquering closet chaos Shoulder bumps, slacks sliding and piling up on the floor, creased and dimpled pants: this is the closet chaos wreaked upon our wardrobes by cheap clothes hangers. Yet avoiding these irritants takes just a little forethought and an ability to match your favorite outfits with the right kinds of clothing hangers. Shirts and blouses Dimples are supposed to appear on your cheeks, not on the shoulders of your shirts. In general, avoid using wire clothes hangers with shirts and blouses, not just because Joan Crawford might come back from the dead and yell at you, but because they're thin and pointy and more likely to stretch or pucker the fabric. Instead, use plastic hangers with rounded ends. |  |
Pants and trousers
Do you know what a dowel is? It's the middle part on wooden clothes hangers where the pants hang. Wider dowels are better for pants because they're less likely to cause creasing. Anti-slip hangers are also good for pants. If you're considering hangers with those clothespin-like clips, make sure the clips aren't made from the same material as Arnold Schwarzenegger's body in Terminator; strong is good, but clips with a rubber coating will be gentler on your pants.
Heavy or delicate clothes
Quality wooden hangers would provide the weight and width that you need for suit jackets, though some people prefer heavy-duty hotel-grade metal hangers. For delicate items such as dresses, you might consider using hangers with a gentler slope (though if the dress has straps, notched hangers would likely offer the best support). Velveteen or padded hangers will help keep silks and satins from slipping onto the floor. A little trick: hangers made from woods such as cedar can be lightly sanded from time to time to help impart a nice scent to whatever's hanging on them.