Kudos? I mean, it's cute but all you did was put hooks into the wall. Home Depot sells these as well.

They're also good for leashes, harnesses, umbrellas, key-chains, and can be part of your launching pad-landing strip.

I'm not sure I'd call this a "before and after"... but the red looks amazing!

It won't look as streamlined without a bit more work, but for people hanging lots of coats, it sometimes is better to mount the hooks on a board and then mount the board directly into the studs. Fewer holes in the wall also.

they had so much character beforehand. If you really wanted to paint them, I wish you had done so to a new set from a hardware store, which you could have gotten in the same design.

The originals would have looked lovely on a reclaimed or older rough-sawn board attached to the wall. But if the idea is a cheap, good-looking fix, it's fine. My version is a $7 chrome rack from the discount store, painted red :)

My version is a $3 chrome rack from IKEA so stuffed with coats and bags you can't even see it :(

I for one am in support of this post, if for no reason than the reminder that I need to get on my horse and ride to the nearest store to do this, too. My biggest dilemma is where to put them. As you enter my home, there is the alarm system key pad on one side, and my timer and light switches on the other. I don't want to hang hooks above either and hide them. The wall nearest the light switches is leading up the steps, and the wall that the key pad is on opens into the living room (specifically the windows behind the couch). As soon as I work all of that out, I'll be getting my coats off of the couch also!

I use this idea everywhere in my house. Love hanging pots and pans plus all my cooking tools. Bathroom towels and in my guest room for my guest to hang up what they want.

We had an odd assortment of old hooks, and to unify them we painted them all black, and mounted them on a finished wood board, then mounted the board to the wall. It looks really great and is a big help keeping us tidy.

So you paid $15 dollars for 4 "Vintage" brass coathooks that you could have bought from a local hardware store for $1.88 each???

http://www.ronshomeandhardware.com/N181-081-2PK-AB-Coat-Hat-Hook-p/542715.htm

Throw in a can of red spraypaint and a few screws and you'd still come out spending less than $15...

http://www.ronshomeandhardware.com/249124-12-OZ-Apple-Red-Spray-Paint-p/120937.htm?Click=1017

I think the red is an inspired choice, and love that you're re-using instead of buying new. There are still plenty of these out there for anyone who wants the old patina.

Love the red - gives it a modern/vintage look. I wouldn't have thought of painting them. Love these easy ideas!

I'm struggling here to see what this post is about. Hanging hooks on a wall?! And it took you how long to work out this brilliant 'solution' to your small closet problem? Some of us have serious decorating to be done...don't waste my time AT.

Yeah, sorry. Not sure this constitutes a brilliant idea--using coat hooks to hang coats!

I actually don't like the look of the hooks all in the wall instead of first mounted on a board, either. I see cracks in the plaster or crumbling drywall in your future.

The most hilarious part of this was: "But, one year and hours of hook researching later, we really have no excuse for draping our coats over the sofa any longer." It took one year and hours of research to buy $15 worth of vintage hooks, de-vintage them with red paint, and hang them on the wall as...hooks? You know, those hook things that you hang coats on? That research sure paid off.

I don't see why people have a problem with someone choosing to get their hooks secondhand instead of new. Well, I guess their priority is with cost, but they should realize some people prefer reusing what is already out there.

Kudos to the writer for getting something done about the situation. I also like the idea of using the brass as-is & mounting on an older board.

Thanks for the post.

Plus "new" usually lacks character & quality for the same price as older stuff.

Alot of grumbling over a simple DIY idea. I too had been searching for the perfect reasonably priced modern(ish) coat rack for my entry with no luck until I stumbled upon some great hooks that now do the job perfectly similar to above. I think this post serves as a reminder to think outside the retail box for those of us that are not as hardware store inclined.

@digger --

It's a coat hook - not exactly something unique or special in any way, shape or form...
...and she painted it anyway, so whatever "character" that was there is loooooong gone.

I am curious why some people get so indignant when a post doesn't suit their needs. I consider AT a gift.....it's like getting a free design magazine every day. I love it. It's FREE...how many things in life can you say are actually free and this amazing.
This DIY post actually helps me a lot. I bought a bag of 20 of these hooks for $3 at a thrift store this summer and have been looking for ideas on how to use them. Thank you!

This gives me the idea of using mismatched vintage hooks of different shapes and for various uses and painting them all the same colour and aligning them on the wall different hooks for heavy coats, smaller ones for bags, umbrellas, wide ones for hats... hmm
see, it was a useful post in the end :-)

ooh - inspiration to get those vintage hooks up that I bought 6+ months ago at the thrift store that have been sitting in a pile on a shelf in my entry doing the opposite of what they're supposed to be doing. I've been thinking a lot about painting a board to attach them to, but now that I see you can simply screw them right into the wall, that seems like an easier solution. And maybe something I'll actually get around to doing.

here is another coat hook idea that often gets a thumbs up from folks who come to my house.
i bought some cheapo black iron coat hooks, and a really cheapo full length mirror. painted the white plastic frame of the mirror black and hung it on a small section of wall in the bedroom. then attached 3 hooks on each side of the mirror--top one a bit above the top of the mirror--bottom one about mid-way down. i use the hooks for purses, scarves, jackets.....it looks good, and remarkably like a single unit.

I had a similar idea for a towel rack using hooks and an old window. You can check it out on my blog at http://thedesigningprose.blogspot.com/2010/11/nell-hills-inspired-towel-rack.html. I love the idea of reusing and I like that they didn't just buy a rack, but used their imagination in execution of a basic item like a coat hook. Sometimes it's the simplest things that we do that make the "accessories" in our homes!

they turned out pretty...love the red!

Yeah...kinda lame...just saying....hook research....umm, do these people have head injuries?

LOL @ the haterade in here. If there is any change they should get a brush and touch up the silver hardware so it matches the red.

Well I LOVE your new/old red hooks and don't care how you got them or how much you paid for them or how long it took you to find them.

Letting options "simmer on a back burner" for a while reduces chances of buyer's remorse. While shopping unsuccessfullly for a coat tree and an umbrella stand, I realized that a hook rack would do the same job using less money and space, and also leave the floor clear for easier movement and cleaning. It worked so well that I hung another one at the back door.

I love the red hooks - we have also been trying to figure out a fun alternative to a coat rack and this is what we came up with - the knobs came from Anthroplogie clearance they are screwed into something we found at a antique store I believe it is farm equipment??
http://picasaweb.google.com/jennifer.halliday/DropBox?authkey=Gv1sRgCL29793xvuP3ngE#5546171581861414754

Such a simple change with the red paint...love it.

coat stand
I think the red is an inspired choice, and love that you're re-using instead of buying new. There are still plenty of these out there for anyone who wants the old patina