The Best Slim Space-Saving Skirt Hanger

Welcome to part 2 of my hanger review, which is all about skirt hangers. In part 1, I shared my pick for the best slim space-saving shirt hanger. Then, I searched for the best slim skirt hanger, which turned out to be more challenging.

When I moved across the country recently, I ditched all my skirt hangers. (I don’t recall the brand, but they were chrome.) While they were sturdy, they had one big problem: they gripped too hard, leaving marks on many of my skirts. This led to me trying to protect my skirts by placing a foam layer between the skirt and the clips. But the clips instantly flattened the foam. So then I cut pieces of cardboard to go over the foam. This double layer of protection went on all my skirts before I clipped them.

This was way more work than I wanted just to hang up my skirts.

My Skirt Hanger Search Criteria

In searching for new skirt hangers, here’s what I looked for:

• Durability
• Ease of clipping
• Sturdy and grips well
• Does not damage fabrics
• Slim and space-saving

Sherry from Save Spend Splurge told me that she favors skirt hangers with a clamp design. These don’t leave marks, she says. However, I’m working with limited closet space here, so I wanted something slimmer. This limited my search to hangers with clip designs.

I ended up testing out three different hangers. I tried each hanger on several skirts of differing materials, from polyester crepe to wool. Each skirt was left alone for three days on the hanger before I checked on it.

The skirt hangers that I tested:

1. Marie Kondo Serene Matte Metal Pants & Skirt Hanger
2. Mawa Non-Slip Pants & Skirt Hanger
3. Helthlyes Adjustable Pants Hanger 

Marie Kondo Serene Matte Metal Pants & Skirt Hanger

Marie Kondo partnered with The Container Store on a line of home organizing goods, including hangers.

Price: Sold in a set of 3 for $8.99, the Marie Kondo skirt hanger is the priciest of the ones I tried.

Construction: Aluminum and bamboo. The bamboo on this skirt hanger looks really nice, though it doesn’t add anything function wise. (The aluminum bar goes through the center of the bamboo.) The clip itself is metal, though the padding that grips the clothes is plastic. I also noticed small plastic discs on the outside of each clip. Perhaps to help keep the clip in place?

Pinch Situation: These hangers leave a thin mark on some items. Note the “teeth” marks on the pink skirt (made of a polyester) and the wool blend skirt.

What I Liked: This hanger is the most aesthetically pleasing of the bunch with its clean and minimalist look. The aluminum comes in white or black.

What Concerned Me: The plastic parts. How durable are they? What if they break after a couple years and ruin the hanger?  

Mawa Slim Skirt Hangers

Since I ended up choosing the Mawa Silhouette Ultra-Slim Shirt Hanger as my every day hanger pick, it only made sense that I should try the skirt hanger from this brand.

Price: I bought these on Amazon, where the price fluctuates, and was able to snag them at $2.22 a piece. However, the current price is the same as the Marie Kondo hangers at $3.00 a piece.

Construction: Alloy steel with a non-slip rubbery coating.

Pinch situation: Compared to the Marie Kondo hanger, the coated clip on the Mawa hanger spreads pressure across more surface area. This hanger left a more gentle mark when it left a mark. You can see a slight impression on the pink and beige skirts below, which are both made from polyester.

What I Liked: These gripped the best. They were gentle but still sturdy.

What Concerned Me: This hanger is the smallest all around. It’s 12″ across whereas the Marie Kondo hanger is an inch longer. The hook on the Mawa hanger is likewise small and barely fits on the wooden rod in my closet, which measures roughly 1 3/8″ in diameter. I need to grab the hanger by the stem of the hook in order to remove it from the rod. The hook part also jiggles because it’s not soldered on. It is kept in place between two bumps of metal on the bar. Due to these two factors, it’s kind of hard to move them on the rod. They get stuck in place when I’m trying to browse and push a bunch of garments over.

Helthlyes Adjustable Pants Hangers

I found the last option, the Helthlyes Adjustable Pants Hanger, on Amazon.

Price: At $15.99 for 10, they are the cheapest of the bunch at $1.60 a piece.

Construction: These looked similar to the Mawa ones with metal construction and a rubbery coating. Plus, the hook part was larger.

Pinch Situation: While the clips are coated, there are raised lines on them that extend down into the clip part and make contact with your clothes. They leave marks. Behold the little vampire marks on the beige skirt below.

What I Liked: Well, they’re sturdy. But honestly, I did not like these. Given their similar look to the Mawa hanger, I thought these might be the solution. But nope, the quality isn’t as nice.

What Concerned Me: These hangers pinched the hardest out of the three. They also require more pressure to open the clip. I think they’d be hard for someone with arthritis to use.

The Winner

If my wooden rod was skinnier, it would be a no brainer. The Mawa are the gentlest while still having a good grip. But the small hook part of the Mawa made them a bit of a hassle to get off the rod. I wondered if I should go for the runner up hanger, the Marie Kondo one.

After sharing my dilemma with a friend, she asked why didn’t I replace my rod or try to plane it. I thought about borrowing a car to buy a new rod. But in the end, I decided to sand it to slim it down. While the hangers don’t fit perfectly now, they fit much better. So far, I’m pleased with the hangers. No more ridiculous double layer of cardboard and foam to protect my clothes!