I would love to tell you that I have this gorgeous, totally organized master bedroom closet… That I decided I needed decorative hangers for all of my neatly hung clothes… and that I have so much room I can admire each piece of my wardrobe just as much as each unique hanger they hang on. I would be lying.
I am a total shopaholic, and my main master bedroom closet is overflowing…. it’s such a mess. I definitely do not have a enough room for all of my clothes (I know- what woman doesn’t say that)... Clothes are piled together on the same hanger… flung over doors and hooks… stuffed onto shelves. I DREAM of a bigger, more organized space!! I would be kidding myself if I thought it made sense to put decorative hangers in there!
I do, however, have a couple of closets in my house that I reserve for special pieces. In fact, I turned one into an entire costume closet. Oh – how I love that closet! In an effort to keep it nice & organized all of the costumes are hung on wooden hangers. It was time to take it one step farther for these special pieces… so what better space to put Halloween inspired decoupage hangers than a costume closet! Now… if you have my dream closet, and can actually keep your everyday clothes organized, then I’m jealous because these hangers will look awesome in your closet…. I only wish I had space to use these hangers for my every day clothes!! Or maybe you just have a few special pieces that deserve an equally special hanger. Either way, this project is a great excuse to spruce up that closet!
Now, decoupage hangers is not a new idea, and I am certainly not reinventing the wheel. But I will say, like many craft projects you come across on Pinterest… there is a justified assumption that “crafty” things are “girly” or “cheesy”. If you see all of the decoupage hangers that others have photographed, I swear more than 90% of them are floral or pink. I’m here to change the perception. Even decoupage hangers can be dark or gothic or spooky… whatever your taste may be.
You can use a lot of different materials to decoupage, but I have so many packages of paper cocktail napkins that it made sense for me to use something I already owned. I don’t know if I buy them or if people give them to me as gifts, but I have amassed quite a collection of these napkins… especially Halloween ones. What a shock! My guess is that many of you may be the same. When all of that Halloween stuff comes out on store shelves, I basically start stock piling for the entire year… I mean – a girl has to take advantage of all of those skulls when she can!! OK, so if you don’t hoard Halloween crap all year long like I do, and don’t have spooky napkins laying around… then I suggest next Fall you start keeping your eyes open!! Or just order the napkins I found on amazon.. 🙂 See the ad below!
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This project is stupid simple…. here’s what you’ll need:
- Wooden Hangers
- White Paint
- Painters Tape
- Halloween Paper Napkins – Here are a few paper napkin designs you can order from Amazon that should work perfectly for this project!
- Mod Podge
– I used the Matte Finish, but there is a Variety Pack
you can purchase if you’d like to try out other options.
- Foam Brush
- Coordinating Ribbon
- Sealing Spray (Polycrylic is one of my go-to’s)
– I used the Matte Finish, but there is a 
you can purchase if you’d like to try out other options.Sand the hangers. No need to go crazy…. just rough them up a bit.
Wrap Painters Tape around the hook of the hanger (to protect from the white paint)
Paint the hangers white. I used a flat white paint & primer spray paint. Again, there is no need to paint these perfectly since you’ll be covering them…. but you’ll see that a white base provides a better canvas for your napkins, as the contrast between the design and the napkin background stands out more. Above is a shot of two hangers I worked on using the same napkin. One hanger I painted, the other I didn’t. You can see how the wood is showing through a bit on the one. It certainly doesn’t look bad…. but the skeleton design definitely pops more on the hanger painted white.
Separate the plies of your napkin. Most cocktail napkins come as two or three-ply. You will only be working with the single ply that has your image on it. Carefully pull each ply apart. You may want to set aside the blank plies…. this project can get messy and you’ll be happy you had a napkin nearby!
To apply the design, tear the napkin ply into smaller pieces. Because of the curves of the hanger, it’s easier to work with small pieces. I tend to tear each piece one at a time as I adhere it. This ensures I have the size I need, and can control exactly where the pattern lays on the hanger. I also prefer to tear instead of cut the napkin apart. There is something about the torn edges that simply blends better as you begin to layer.
Tip: if you have a focal design element (like the skeleton for example), layer that piece on last to ensure overlapping layers do not cover it up.
To adhere the torn pieces, brush the Mod Podge onto the hanger and lay the paper napkin onto the wood. I have seen tutorials recommend applying the mod podge generously. I disagree. A single ply of napkin is extremely thin. Once it becomes wet, it can easily tear. So, work in one area at a time, apply the mod podge lightly, and very gently smooth out the paper. A few wrinkles in the paper is practically unavoidable, so just own it. I think it gives a nice weathered look once the project is complete anyway! I use my finger to dab a bit of mod podge on the edges of each piece I work with to ensure the entire piece was mod podged.
Warning… Mod Podge is basically glue, so if you get any on your fingers beware of touching the paper that had been adhered to the hanger… it’s very easy to get stuck to it and accidentally rip it off!
Continue to add and overlap layers of torn paper until the entire hanger is covered.
Warning… work on small sections at a time, and allow to dry for a bit. If you continue piling layers of paper over already wet layers, the paper will tear, leaving gaps. I like to add a few pieces of paper to one hanger, and set it aside to dry while I work a bit on the next one. By the time I get back around to the first one, it was dry enough to add more layers.
Once the hanger is completely covered in paper, AND completely dry…. brush on a heavy coat of mod podge over the entire surface. Now is the time to be generous…
Allow to dry completely.
Your hanger is ready to use. But, as an added step of precaution (because dried mod podge can flake off a bit, and that’s the last thing you want all over your pretty black clothes!) Spray each hanger with a protective finish.
Remove the painters tape from the hook.
Tie a ribbon around each hanger hook.
Voila!
Want to try another fun Mod Podge project? Try transferring an image to metal like this Metamorphic Skull Wall Art. For other image transfer tools…. learn to use Sticker Paper with this Vintage Bat TV Tray Table tutorial or Waterslide Decals with this Deaths Head Moth Bookstand tutorial.
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