Sometimes You Should Just Buy The Thing And Forgo The DIY (My DIY Wall-Mounted Coat Rack Fail)
The other day, I was scrolling through reels, and I came across a beautiful hallway makeover. It caught my attention because the “after” had white wainscoting and a blue-green grasscloth on the walls. It was very “me”. But as I watched it for the fourth or fifth time, I noticed a beautiful brass wall-mounted coat rack. I scrolled through the comments to see if a source was given, and I found that it was from Rejuvenation.
I get asked on a fairly regular basis if we have a coat closet for guests. We don’t, so I thought that this wall-mounted coat rack would be perfect for the narrow wall space to the right of our front door. So I immediately looked up this coat rack, but found that it only had three double hooks. I really wanted a larger one with more hooks. They actually did have one, but it was $199, and that seemed like a lot of money for a brass wall-mounted coat rack.
I looked up others, but none of them seemed as nice as the Rejuvenation coat rack. And the only one that I did like just as much as the one from Rejuvenation was too wide for my wall space. So I got the clever idea to just make my own. I had this vision of a walnut backing with gold hooks on it. I found some really pretty hooks on Amazon (affiliate link), so when they came yesterday, I thought this project would be the perfect diversion from the dreadful storage closet project. (Yes, I’m procrastinating.)
I have plenty of scrap plywood, so I used my table saw to cut a piece to the right width for my wall space.
And then I determined how I wanted my hooks arranged to determine how tall the plywood needed to be.
Once determined, I cut it down the right height.
I also have quite a bit of leftover walnut veneer from past projects, so I cut a piece and used contact cement to attach it to the plywood.
Once that was adhered to the plywood, I used a new, sharp razor blade to cut off the excess.
For the edges, I decided instead of using veneer, I would use the gold tape that I used on my studio cabinets.
Here’s how that looked once it was attached.
I tried couple of different ways to put the walnut backing on the wall, but everything I tried (like a sawtooth picture hanger and other picture hangers) made it stand out from the wall. So I decided to just screw the board to the wall directly through all four corners.
Here’s how that looked once it was fully attached to the wall.
To cover those screw heads, I used these huge gold tacks that I found to hang my oversized calendar in the studio, and I used wire cutters to cut the point off so that I was just left with the big round gold head of the tack.
And I hot glued those over the screw heads…
And then I started screwing on the hooks. After the first one was up, I started questioning this whole plan. I wasn’t loving it. But I decided to press on, and I put up the second one. It didn’t get any better for me.
I was so disappointed. Sometimes, I envision something in my head, and it turns out just as good or even better than what I had envisioned. Sometimes things don’t turn out at all like what I had envisioned. And this one was definitely a swing and a miss for me.
The real bummer is that when I was taking it down and trying to disassemble it, I stripped one of the screws, and so I can’t get this one off of the backer boards.
And then I tried to attach the hooks directly to the wall, and one of the screw heads twisted right off of the screw.
So my idea didn’t work out at all. All I wanted to do was procrastinate on the project I really needed to be working on 😀 , and do something quick and fun, and have some almost immediate gratification with a pretty but useful finished project. But that didn’t happen. All I ended up doing was wasting a valuable day when I could have finished my storage closet, and poking some holes in my wall that now need to be repaired.
But that’s okay, right? We win some, we lose some. And I like to share my failed projects because (1) that’s the reality of DIYing. Every creative is going to have a fair share of fails. But also, (2) I think even my fails can possibly spark another creative idea, if not for me, then possibly for you. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve watched someone online create something that I had no interest in, or something that I thought was downright ugly, but their process or the products they used sparked a creative idea for me
But after all of that yesterday, and ending with a fail, I sat in bed last night and ordered the wall-mounted coat rack from Rejuvenation. 😀
I should have just done that in the first place. But I’ll find a use for the other hooks. I need a hook or two by the back studio doors, and I’m sure I can use the rest on my future closet. So at least they won’t go to waste. And I’m glad about that, because they really are pretty.
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
I’m here, procrastinating my boring work. 🙂 More times than not I’m inclined to think that Rejuvenation is overpriced and not worth it, but I think that coat rack is beautiful and worth the $200 and I’m glad you ordered it.
We all have the story of the “fail” and love the new coat rack!
There is a drill bit that aids in removing stripped screw heads. We bought ours from Sears years (many years) ago. I see Amazon has them—they do look different than what we have—since then they probably have improved how it works!
To remove that stripped screw, try placing a rubber band between the screw and screwdriver. It will give the screwdriver something to grip.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained, is our motto here on the farm. I loved your idea, perhaps it just wasn’t big enough for your taste. Keep on trucking.
Cheers!
Well, the good news is the hooks will come in handy and they are beautiful. AND the rack is absolutely beautiful. So worth it! And, been there, done that! It’s something in our brains that looks at something and says…I could make that…and save money. Not always true, so we have all learned over time. Onward on the closet!
I. Adore. You!
I was actually liking yours but then I saw the Rejuvenation one and it really looks worth the $199. I have been buying Rejuvenation since they were in original hands. It kind of hurts to remember the expensive and beautiful light fixtures I left behind in houses I sold. I hope the new owners appreciated them. I still have a gorgeous Garden Home (the name of a Rejuvenation pendant light from long before they were acquired) in a box waiting for a renovation.
Love the hooks. Very classy. Well worth the purchase.
Love the story too. Thanks for sharing.
If you can mock up a kitchen why not a coat hook thingy that lives in your head? Or even draw it out on graph paper? Seems like that would save money and time.
Haha, I sure appreciate this post. Love what you do!
The brass coat rack from Rejuvenation looks “naked” after seeing your piece of walnut on the one you attempted to create. Could you add your own magical touch to the one you ordered by mounting it on walnut?
The coat rack from Rejuvenation is a looker! (Hope the screws hit a stud, or I would not put much weight on it.) It’s so annoying when an idea either takes way longer than you thought, or, after all the time and energy, you aren’t pleased with the finished product! Happens to me all the time!
This is a great post! Thank you for sharing! I have a LOT more fails than you do, so it’s helpful to know an experienced DYIer has them too!
I really like the one you chose. Also, if you end up using that new mural there at the entryway this one will look nicer, it won’t block a big chunk of the picture!
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. I think your Kristi made coat rack was a good idea to try. You may even use some of those hooks in your workshop later on.
I love the one you have ordered.