Designing a coat stand

Coat Stand Trifles

History of the Coat Stand

Designing a coat stand

Classic Coat Stands

Coat stand auctions

Designing a coat stand is a great metalwork or woodwork project and often used to teach design students in their first or second year of engineering or design school.

Design Considerations

There are few initial design considerations:

• What type of coat stand are you designing? A traditional victorian style coat stand (2), garment rail, coat tree, coat hook (2), clothes pegs on a pole, or a valet.
• What materials will you use? Wood, metal, plastic.
• What colours and shapes will be a part of your final design.
• Who is it for? Child, adult, men, women, unisex, universal - pets!?
• What is the target environment - office or home - what is the expected number of people that will likely use your coat stand at any time.
• Think about winter and summer - winter requires heavy coats, whereas summer requires lighter sweaters and jackets.
• What about storage for related clothing: umbrellas, scarves, gloves, and hats. Valets, because they are more personal sometimes have storage space for cufflinks and ties.
• Balance - will it topple over when one heavy coat is placed on it
• Height of hooks - vertically challenged people can't hang their clothes!
• Matt or glossy?
• Clean steel or grungy wood?
• Wear and tear - will it break. Will the legs fall off when it is moved - a common problem
• Will it be invisible when there are a few clothes on it. Maybe this is what you want - maybe you want it to stand out even when there are clothes hanging on it
• What equipment will you need? What about mass-production? Cost of materials? Self-assembly?
• Delivery, packaging, weight...

Examples

Some coat stand designs stand out from the rest. See this amazing Salvador Dali coat stand by Lorna Wilby (1 February 2010). Also see this simple functional coat stand designed by Peter Marigold. This inspirational coat stand design by Ett la Benn uses a simple wooden pole with hinges that allow the user of the coat stand to design their own shape - great idea!

From Designing to Building (MIT course)

Following the design process is what this course is about. The idea is to choose a simple idea - a coat stand - and follow the design process from concept to manufacturing.

The first lucy coat stand prototype

Steps

• Choose a goal related to your coat stand - what is it you want to achieve - E.g. dominate the coat stand world, appeal to parents, emphasis on function and ease of use, or a trendy fashionable coat stand
• Choose a set of design rules (formulae) that you want your prototype designs to adhere to. E.g. Must be designed for children, must support 10 kgs/lbs of clothes, must fall over if person puts a jacket on it
• Think of 3-5 different coat stand designs - use sketches
• Spend some time refining all the designs
• Choose the best design that will help you achieve your goal
• Refine the best design
• Perform calculations and rationalise your design. Ensure it meets quality and safety standards. For example, what effect will it have if you place a 10 kg/lb weight on the end of the coat stand to unbalance it?
• Build a small prototype in cheap materials (wood/glue)
• Decide what materials are to be used for the finished product
• Purchase the materials
• Build it

Construction Materials

Build a prototype. Research and choose the materials that will help you convert the prototype into a finished product. Use metal pipe bending equipment if needed (as used on the Boot Kidz coat stands).

Design

You can use software e.g. Autocad(TM), 3d studio(TM), to design the coat stand. Base the design around your initial goals and design rules.


Showing AMSES Frame2D 2.0 software to design a bridge - download

Examples of Designer Coat stands

• Wishbone coat stand by Bush and Hertzog
• Sticks coat stand by Stina Sandwall
• Designer Coat Stands - on Panik Design.com
• Tripod coat stand design

External links

• Build your own coat rack for under $100 in 4 hours - step by step guide with instructions and plans
• List of coat stand designs (various) - a good list of designs from Word Workers Workshop.com
• MIT designing a coat stand - as part of civil engineering degree
• Elizabeth Lex (MIT student) - portfolio showing MIT designs - requires PDF reader
• How to build a wall mounted coat rack - on eHow.com

Related links

Designer and Funky Coat Stands

Scribble Coat Rack

• Page 256 - Shabby Chic Coat Stands
• Page 257 - Unusual Coat Racks
• Page 258 - Designer Coat Stands
• Page 259 - Pink Coat Stands
• Page 260 - Tree Coat Stand

Professional and Office Coat Stands

• Page 261 - Coat stands for home and office (UK)
• Page 262 - Coat stands (USA)
• Page 263 - Selection of Coat Stands
• Page 264 - Professional garment racks for shops, restaurants, offices
• Page 265 - Office coat stand with deluxe hangers

Bedroom and Bathroom Stands

Towel Stands

• Page 266 - Valet Stands for the Bedroom or Executive Office/Gentleman's clothes stand
• Page 267 - Towel Stands for the Kitchen or Bathroom

Wooden Coat Stands

Bentwood Coat Stands

• Page 268 - Wooden coat stands
• Page 269 - Bentwood coat, hat, and umbrella stand (UK)
• Page 270 - Bentwood coat, hat, and umbrella stand (USA)
• Page 271 - Classic Victorian Hat Stand

Metal Coat Stands

Wrought Iron Coat Stands

• Page 272 - Wrought Iron Coat Stand
• Page 273 - Chrome coat stands

Coat Stand Information

• Page 274 - History of the coat stand
• Page 275 - Features of coat stands
• Page 276 - Designing a coat stand <<<
• Page 277 - Coat Stand auctions
• Page 278 - Coat stand related definitions

Exhibition Furniture

• Page 279 - Opod TV Stand
• Page 280 - Exhibition Plinths
• Page 281 - Display Stands for Exhibitions and Shops

Exhibitions other

• Page 282 - Plant Stands
• Page 283 - Art, posters, and exhibitions
• Page 284 - Amazon Gift Vouchers