Wall Mounted Secret Coat Rack

I needed a new wall mounted coat rack for my apartment. Instead of building a normal one I decided to make one with secret pulled down coat hooks.

At first it looks like an art piece on the wall with varying sticks.

Then - certain sticks rotate down 22.5 degrees to hang your coat or hat on.

Step 1: Cut Your Lumber

All the lumber was 1/2" or 3/4" plywood scraps lying around my shop.

Know what your overall size will be. Mine was about 1'-4" tall by 3'-0" wide. Cut that out of a sheet of 1/2" plywood. This will be your back board that connects everything together

Next cut all your sticks.

From 3/4" plywood - rip a handful of strips down to 1 1/4"

Cut them to length based on what look you want.

Mine were (6) 6", (10) 9", (4) 10", and (7) 12"

Put a 22.5 deg chamfer on the ends/backs of the 6" sticks- this will allow it room to rotate out without hitting the back piece, as well as to not rotate down too far to work as a coat hook.

Mock up your sticks on your board and adjust the heights to your taste- Remember to keep the 6" sticks in the middle- so the rod that they rotate around can connect to its neighboring sticks.

While mocked up, trace your outline on the 1/2" sheet of ply and cut out your new shape.

Now sand down all your pieces . Start with 80 grit. move on to 100, end with 120.

Step 2: Drill Out the Sticks

Mock up your sticks again and mark the short/rotating ones where the chamfer ends- also mark the pieces on either side of it.

Use a 1/4" drill bit to drill out all three sticks. And the next three, and the next., etc.

Take some 1/4" rod and cut it down to 3.75" (1.25"x3).

I got 2 feet worth for about $3 from the hardware store.

Insert the rod into each section and mock up again.

Try rotating the sticks to see if they move easily. If not drill out the hole a little more or add some wax.

Step 3: Paint!

Before assembly, paint all your pieces individually. It will be a lot easier to paint than when it is assembled.

I mixed my own paint and went with blue/grey antique look. But you can do whatever you'd like.

My blue recipe was 49.5% white, 49.5% blue, and 1% yellow.

My grey recipe was 50% white and 50% black.

I did a full coat of the grey across each stick and the back.

Once dry I used a dry brush technique with the blue color, leaving certain parts grey.

Step 4: Assemble

Run some wood glue across the front of the 1/2" ply backer and the backs of the 3/4" sticks- Be sure to NOT glue where the short/rotating sticks are.

Use a pneumatic stapler and 1" staples ( or 1 " screws if you don't have access to pneumatics) and staple from the back through the 1/2'" ply into the 3/4" stick. Again, NOT into the rotating ones.

Step 5: Hang

Attach some generic picture hanger brackets to the back of the frame. I found some for about $1.50 from the hardware store.

Then hang it on your wall and hang up your coats and hats!

Just be sure your guests know which sticks rotate down - so they don't try to pull too hard on the ones that are stationary.