Hung up on Hangers

Have you ever bought a book for its cover? A bottle of wine for its label? A blouse for its hanger? Faithful readers of the blog know I have a thing about hangers.

I've written about them before, waxing rhapsodic about the circa 1940s-50s wooden hotel hangers my parents brought back as trip souvenirs.I've looked back fondly on the set of flower printed quilted hangers that was a gift for my tenth birthday. I still use the skirt hangers I bought at Woolworth's for 10 cents, though their 60-year-old hinges are hell to open.

There are no wire hangers in my house, save the ones coming from the cleaners with my husband's shirts. Instead of returning them as I should, I enjoy twisting the little devils out of recognition before throwing them in the trash. Heaven forbid we should need to fish keys out of a drain or unlock a car door.

Some years ago I got rid of all the tube hangers (good for nothing) and retail-style plastic hangers  (too bulky) and invested in those black felted velvet skinny hangers called "Huggable Hangers". I never seem to have enough.

This hanger story is one of those I'm-sorry-I-couldn't-help-myself moments. TJ Maxx held its seasonal Runway Event this week. Certain TJs have a section devoted to high-end designer apparel. They are the real deal with offerings from Versace, Pucci, Valentino, etc. as well as high-end American brands like Diane von Furstenburg, Tory Burch, and St. John. The price points are not necessarily in my playing field, but I do love to look and feel and admire. Sometimes I will splurge on a piece. Occasionally I will even find a real bargain.

Lately I've been in a silk shirt frame of mind and did find a nice grey one by French brand L'Agence. At $69.95 it was not exactly a steal, though L'Agence shirts sell for between $250 and $350. It was a very nice shirt...on a spectacular hanger. Someone had put it on a glossy black hanger reading "SAINT LAURENT PARIS". It's a shirt I could use. I HAD to have the hanger.

At checkout I innocently asked the clerk if she would mind to leave it hanging. She did not and covered it (shirt and hanger) with a clear plastic bag.

I won't keep the shirt on the hanger. St.Laurent deserves something special (if I hide it away in the closet at all). And I won't return the shirt and keep the hanger. The hanger gods would not be happy. They are still annoyed at my parents.