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Updated: Mar 21, 2022 80 Comments · by

Coffee Break: Petite Hangers

Coffee Break |

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Attention, short ladies: did you know that petite hangers exist? A kids' hanger is 12″ and a “regular” hanger is 17.5″ — but you can find 14.5-15.5″ hangers at some spots if you know to look for them.

The pictured velvet hangers are $35 at Amazon for a pack of $25; if you prefer wooden ones you can get them at Amazon or Wooden Hangers USA.

Side note, readers: who's on Team Velvet Hanger, and who's on Team Wooden Hanger?

This post contains affiliate links and Corporette® may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. For more details see here. Thank you so much for your support!

Sales of note for 10.10.24

  • Nordstrom – Extra 25% off clearance (through 10/14); there's a lot from reader favorites like Boss, FARM Rio, Marc Fisher LTD, AGL, and more. Plus: free 2-day shipping, and cardmembers earn 6x points per dollar (3X the points on beauty).
  • Ann Taylor – Extra 50% off sale (ends 10/12)
  • Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything plus extra 25% off your $125+ purchase
  • Boden – 10% off new styles with code; free shipping over $75
  • Eloquii – Extra 50% off a lot of sale items, with code
  • J.Crew – 40% off sitewide
  • J.Crew Factory – 50% off entire site, plus extra 25% off orders $150+
  • Lo & Sons – Fall Sale, up to 35% off
  • M.M.LaFleur – Save 25% sitewide
  • Neiman Marcus – Sale on sale, up to 85% off
  • Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
  • Talbots – 50% off 2+ markdowns
  • Target – Circle week, deals on 1000s of items
  • White House Black Market – Buy one, get one – 50% off full price styles

Sales of note for 10.10.24

  • Nordstrom – Extra 25% off clearance (through 10/14); there's a lot from reader favorites like Boss, FARM Rio, Marc Fisher LTD, AGL, and more. Plus: free 2-day shipping, and cardmembers earn 6x points per dollar (3X the points on beauty).
  • Ann Taylor – Extra 50% off sale (ends 10/12)
  • Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything plus extra 25% off your $125+ purchase
  • Boden – 10% off new styles with code; free shipping over $75
  • Eloquii – Extra 50% off a lot of sale items, with code
  • J.Crew – 40% off sitewide
  • J.Crew Factory – 50% off entire site, plus extra 25% off orders $150+
  • Lo & Sons – Fall Sale, up to 35% off
  • M.M.LaFleur – Save 25% sitewide
  • Neiman Marcus – Sale on sale, up to 85% off
  • Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
  • Talbots – 50% off 2+ markdowns
  • Target – Circle week, deals on 1000s of items
  • White House Black Market – Buy one, get one – 50% off full price styles

And some of our latest threadjacks here at Corporette (reader questions and commentary) — see more here!

Some of our latest threadjacks include:

About Kat

Kat Griffin is the founder, publisher, and editor-in-chief of Corporette. You can read more about her here.

Comments

  1. Anonymous

    I’ve been using 15 inch hangers for years – it’s the only way I can hang thin knits or blouses – unisex (read men’s) hangers give misshapen sleeves and shoulders.

    Not petite, but a size S/4.

    Velvet over wood for knits, but I also like plastic. It depends on shape more than material.

    • Anonymous

      For hangers, “petite” doesn’t mean short, it means narrow across the shoulders. I am a tallish size 2 and love petite hangers. No more shoulder bumps.

      For most clothes, I love the petite hangers from Bend & Hook. They appear to be sold out at the moment, but the brand’s page says a new style is coming out soon. I use petite wood hangers for blazers, jackets, and structured dresses. I do not hang knits. I don’t like the velvet hangers because they seem cheap and tacky and like they’d shed or attract dust.

  2. Anon

    I’m team plastic hanger. They’re easy to wipe clean, and my husband has a habit of hanging his stinky jackets in the garage for days on end to air out bar smoke. I’d be furious if he hogged up nice velvet or wooden hangers.

    My only complaint is that I prefer a specific shape of hanger than nobody seems to make anymore; they have little baby hooks under the shoulders instead of large slotted clips. All the big-box stores stopped carrying them, so I guard the ones I have like Gollum.

  3. Anonymous

    I’m Team Velvet (mostly) but for blazers and coats with padded shoulders I prefer wood.

    Random Q: what are a) good hotels in Chicago near kid-friendly tourist stuff, and b) where I could get last minute reservations also? Thank you in advance… somehow just realized my kid’s spring break is this week.

    • London (formerly NY) CPA

      When I was a kid, my dad took us to the Intercontinental Hotel in Chicago. It was close to everything, and felt fancy, which was a plus for me, but I also just may have been a weird kid… Also the pool there is very cool, so kids may enjoy that!

  4. Lily

    Looking for recs for a pair of lighter (but not acid) wash, straight (but not baggy or wide, and preferably on the more tapered side at the bottom, but not skinny), mid-to-high (but not up to my belly button) waist jeans, up to $150, with some stretch but that will keep their shape. I’m 5’4, and would like them to hit at my ankle, so that they will look good with casual sneakers. Definitely carry my weight in my lower belly and hips. Basically looking for something that will be a spring substitute for my winter leggings and sneakers combo. I want to project COOL MOM. I already have a pair of agolde jeans that pretty much fit this description, but they were $$$ and also distressed at the knees – looking for something a tiny bit more polished and a bit cheaper. TIA!

  5. Anon

    I use the petite wooden hangers from Wooden Hangers USA. I add shoulder grips as needed. The hangers are an investment, but it’s a one-time purchase for a lifetime of closet success. These are one of my favorite, all-time purchases for sparking joy. Live my closets! Love how my clothes hang!

  6. Diana Barry

    I cover metal hangers with yarn (my mom and grandma also did this) and it makes them both soft and nice-looking! My mom puts pom-poms on the top but I don’t since they take up space.

    Another closet cleanout Q: how many suits should I keep? I am going into the office MAX 1x/week. Most of them do have ankle pants, if that plays into it!

    Same question for my sheath dresses! :-0

    • Anon

      I will say keep all suits that fit, but wear them not as suits right now. Ditto sheath dresses. I feel like those staples, if they fit, are hard to replace should the need arise. And the need always seems to arise.

      • No Face

        I agree. But I’m a litigator so court appearances are always in my future.

  7. Anonymous

    Late response to earlier question about affairs – I needed some time to think about what I wanted to say. My first husband had several affairs (that I know about, maybe there were more). We were in our 20s, and I was just crazy in love with him, and we kept reconciling or I pretended not to know. At the end of that marriage, I had an affair with a co-worker. We were completely unsuited to each other, and I quickly moved from infatuation to not knowing how to get rid of the guy. Although he was not a nice or good person, I believe he sincerely cared about me.
    I don’t feel shame about the affair, I was young, alone, stupid, and naive. Twenty years later, I am still sorry that I hurt this person, and that I was too self-involved to know or care. I feel more sadness about everything than anything else.
    I don’t think my ex-husband knew about my affair, we finally divorced when he told me he was moving out yet again, and I said if you do, you can never come back. I don’t know where I found the strength to do it, and I never spoke to him again except for the day we signed the papers. The idea of “once a cheater, always a cheater” doesn’t resonate with me, and I don’t think it’s true. What is more true for me is that my first husband was careless with my love, callous to my hurt, and humiliated me. If may not cheat on his current wife, but I bet the ability to be cruel remains.

    • Anon

      Thanks for this. I’m in the camp of – it’s complicated. My dear friend was married to a mean, drunk a-hole. His addiction got worse over time, and he said just awful, awful things to her – no physical abuse that I’m aware of, but clearly unhealthy patterns of co-dependency and emotional abuse defined much of their marriage. As it got worse and worse, she started to avoid going home and eventually began an affair with a co-worker. None of us blamed her. She should have left her husband years before she did, but her self-esteem was so broken she didn’t think she deserved better, and this co-worker was patient, gentle, kind – they got married 3 years later and are now expecting their first baby. She still carries enormous guilt about the affair, but those who care about her are so grateful that someone was invested enough to help her feel worthy of a better situation.

  8. Anonymous

    What is everyone wearing for somewhat dressier date nights these days (think a planned double date to a nicer restraint, but not a jacket and tie type place)? Mid thirties, size 14/16, and live in Charlotte. It’s not quite warm enough for my summer dresses, and way too warm for sweater dresses…. I feel like I’m okay with wearing jeans, but don’t know what to wear on top. I’d prefer sleeved shirts vs. sleeves. Probably want to stay under $200 per shirt and top, and under $300 for a dress. I also am the least on trend person ever with shoes, but don’t wear heels… basically I am just lost!

    TIA!!!

    • Anonymous

      summer dress + tall boots (especially brown ones) + cute jacket

      are we back to camisole + structured sweater or jacket yet?

    • Anon

      Not sure if it counts as trendy as mine is definitely a few years old, but I wore an off the shoulder jumpsuit to a similar occasion recently.

    • anon

      Updated 90s early 2000s, swapping out low rise for high rise jeans plus silk camis instead of synthetic polyester. I’ve really enjoyed the vibe of Ramy Brook for date nights as someone solidly in my mid-30s.

      • Anon

        Synthetic polyester? Is there a natural polyester material? I’d be interested in that one!

    • Anne-on

      Midi skirt, tall boots, and chunky sweater? Aqua had lots of cute long sleeved ‘going out tops’ on sale at Bloomingdales. But I agree, this is a hard time of year. I am thoroughly sick of my winter clothes but it’s still too cold for my summer things.

    • Cat

      For fall and spring I often do a slinky silk blouse buttoned to a … lower level than for work … half tucked into jeans with walkable height heels.

  9. Anon

    I need some advice on how to support a sibling. My brother has autism, he is high functioning and just comes off as being a bit odd. He went to college and didn’t study anything that easily translates into a job (B.A. Religious Studies). He is currently working at the post office in the pack handling packages and will be a non-permeant employee for a while (heard stores about it taking 2+ years for some people). He is okay with the work but time to time his hours get changed to being really early in the morning requiring him to get up at 2:30 am, 6 days a week. He does not function well on sleep deprivation and has already had two minor car incidences in a month. His driving instructor worked with people with autism and told us that he shouldn’t be diving more than 15 mins. His current job is ~45 mins away and USPS won’t move him to a location closer to our house. The address listed on the job posting when he applied was much closer to our home but after training they assigned him to a different locations. We are trying to figure out what other jobs might work for him.

    About him: he is methodical and detail oriented. He asks a lot of questions to understands all the details of whatever task/job and then spends time memorizing everything. He needs a job that has some sort of physical movement.

    Questions: Are there any places that can help him with skills development and job placement? Should he tell people he is autistic during the application/interview process (he has gotten interviews for other jobs but I think he might come off as being a bit “weird)? We are in the SF Bay Area in case that is helpful.

    Thank you.

    • Anonymous

      Is he ASD 1 or 2? Your description of him sort of seems inbetween. I would not encourage him to disclose when applying to jobs, people have very strong biases. I would encourage trying to figure out a career path if you can instead of just a job. Perhaps see if theres a job that aligns with his special interests? Look at resources by and for autistic people, the autism mom type resources are usually pretty harmful.

    • Anon

      Everything you describe is very, very normal for the line of work he’s in. Fair or not, it’s the norm and everything he encounters in his current job will almost certainly be the case anywhere he works if he’s doing the same type of work.
      Can he move closer to his job or go to sleep earlier? Unfortunately, this is going to fall under the realm of developing coping skills, rather than find a job doing the same thing but that accommodates.

    • No Face

      Can he ask for a location change or hours change as an official accomodation from USPS? Just an idea.

      • anon

        In his shoes, I would also user the disability accommodation framework to pursue a location + hours change.

        If he’s near Palo Alto, Ada’s Cafe is a wonderful employer of people with disabilities. Even if that’s not a likely fit, they might have referrals to resources.

      • Anon

        I think this is worth thinking about and very well might work, but as someone with a disability, the disability accommodations process is incredibly fraught, since you have to walk a fine line between making the point that you’re sufficiently disabled that you need accommodations, but not so disabled that you can’t do the job. Plus most employers will make you get a doctor to write a letter about your impairments and the accommodations you need, which can be pretty difficult when the situation isn’t really straight forward. Like in this case, you run the risk that you go to your doctor and they decide that your brother is a risk to be driving and report him to the DMV, rather than write a letter saying that he needs to work closer to home. I had one doctor who just told me over and over again he didn’t write disability letters because he thought all patients should work (which seems to confuse social security disability with ADA accommodations- the entire point is that I want to keep working, not get out of work!).

        It’s such an incredibly frustrating process, because a reasonable amount of flexibility could allow a lot of people to be productive employees, but so many employers to just refuse to make accommodations unless they’re the the kind they can’t refuse without getting sued (ramps for wheelchairs, etc.)

    • HI

      Could he get placed closer to home based on his disability? They may be required to provide reasonable accommodation under ADA.

    • Anon

      My brother has Asperger’s (and does not care that they’ve since folded that definition back into the spectrum, it’s what it was called at the time and he doesn’t tolerate change) and he stocks shelves overnight at a grocery store. He loves driving when there’s nobody on the road, he likes working when the customers are not allowed in, and he gets treated really well beause he’s methodical and reliable.

    • Woof

      It sounds like the job is a good fit for him if you could 1. Change the hours so they are steady and 2. Change the location to a place closer to home. I suggest getting him a coach who can help him advocate for himself and inquire as to accommodations.

      The Asperger’s Autism Network has a coaching program for people on the spectrum. A coach can also help him apply for new jobs and guide him through that process, along with what and when to disclose his diagnosis. I’m on the Board–great services, great people. Search for AANE in Watertown MA and you will find them/us.

    • Coach Laura

      I am late replying but looking at this from a different perspective – the ADA states that employees with disabilities are entitled to “reasonable accommodations.” I wonder if it would be worth it for your brother (or an advocate/attorney) to request a work location close to his house? Especially since the job was offered/initially published for that location. I know if it were my employee, I would want them to be safe and would move people around to do it, if at all possible. The next opening at that facility, or perhaps another employee could be moved. Just a thought.

      • Anon

        This is OP. Thank you everyone for the input so far.

        USPS HR said they will only accommodate when he is a regular non-probation employee and that could take several years. Is an employer required to accommodate those in the probation period?

        He attended UCSB for college and they have an adult autism center on campus and we luckily got an assessment so we have the paper work to show he does have a disability.

        • Anon

          Just an FYI, it’s not usually not enough to show that he has a disability. Most employers will insist that as part of their accommodation process, you have a medical professional sign off on the specific accommodations you’re requesting. It’s completely ridiculous, because a doctor doesn’t necessarily understand what things make it challenging to do your job or what’s reasonable for an employer to accommodate, and many of them are very uncomfortable about being asked to write letters for things that aren’t clear medical necessities, but often make the difference for someone to have a manageable life. But having been in this position, I know a lot of doctors and employers will just say that everyone would prefer to have better hours and a shorter commute, even though it affects disabled people more. You definitely need to have a doctor who will back you up on this if you want to ask for accommodations and they’ve already denied your intitial ask.

          • Anon

            I should also add that there’s nothing in the ADA that requires that you use doctors as gatekeepers for disability accommodations, it’s just that most employers have decided to put up as many barriers as possible to prevent having to actually make reasonable accommodations. It’s one thing to verify that a disability exists, but it’s clearly much harder to have to go back to your doctor every time you start a new job and have to go through the process again.

        • anonypotamus

          USPS HR is incorrect – at least in California, employers have an obligation to engage in the interactive process to determine if a reasonable accommodation is available that would permit the employee (probationary or otherwise) to perform the essential functions of their job. The obligation to engage in the interactive process is triggered when the employer knows or has reason to know of the disability and the need for an accommodation.

        • Coach Laura

          I think that the USPS is wrong…everyone in the US is covered under the ADA. Someone else mentioned that California may have additional/better protections layered on top of the ADA. I think it’s terrible that they would try to get out of it because he is a temp employee.

          Someone else mentioned that you need a doctor’s approval. Not sure if that’s true or not but OP said that the brother’s doctor already gave suggestions, so hopefully would be able to write a note to that effect.

    • Anon

      Super late but I hope you see this. Consider looking into library or archives work for him, especially in a university or college library. Stacks maintenance, document delivery or Interlibrary loan combine physical movement and attention to detail and honestly libraries are full of meticulous, detail-oriented quirky individuals with not particularly employable degrees, it’s a stereotype. I wouldn’t disclose in a job interview but most hiring managers would probably recognize some of the characteristics but it wouldn’t worry them. The best shelver/stacks maintenance employee I ever had was on the spectrum (then he graduated, joined the navy and became a submarine specialist). And if your brother graduated from college he could graduate from library school for a professional career. There are other jobs on campuses or certain non-profits that might fit the bill also — anything that Involves tracking inventory and supplies. Art museums, natural history collections, lab or equipment inventory….

    • Anonymous

      I would see if USPS can accommodate as suggested above. If they can’t and moving isn’t feasible, is there an Amazon, UPS or FedEx facility or manufacturing plant nearby that might have a similar job with similar benefits? Even if it’s not the same package handling task, a warehouse environment could have line work that would be similar.

      I’m so sorry he’s dealing with this.

  10. Anonymous

    Are any other Mint users having problems with Vanguard? It’s said it’s down for daily maintenance for a month now.

    • anon

      Yes it’s been super glitchy for me. I saw somewhere that you can’t update/fix the connection during trading hours, so perhaps try outside trading hours?

  11. Deferred compensation

    Who is the best person to talk to about deferred compensation? I was promoted recently and now qualify for this benefit. Is that a CPA? Financial advisor? My HR to figure out what the heck it really means (I’ve done googling but still don’t fully understand it – is it a tax strategy more than anything?).

    FWIW, I’m in a 100% commission role. Income has varied between $300k and a few multiples of that for the last few years and it fluctuates pretty widely.

    • anon

      As an employment lawyer in big law, I was taught to ALWAYS go to the firm’s exec compensation/employee benefits practice group for anything regarding deferred compensation. The rules are highly technical and the tax implications of getting things slightly wrong are enormous.

      That said, I’d first talk to your company to find out what they’re offering and if it’s something of interest.

      • OP

        Sorry for being dense. I work in finance but I know what I know really well but that’s about it. How do I even determine if it’s something of interest? I suspect it’s first and foremost a tax strategy so maybe a conversation for my CPA (once tax season calms down). I might float it by my advisor (who works with my CPA) in the meantime. Maybe reach out to HR to get plan documents and let the professionals help me navigate. Is that fair?

        • Anon

          Yes, it’s a tax strategy. Find out what company is offering and talk to your CPA about it. My guess is that if your comp varies, they may let you defer to a later year to even out and mitigate a hit.

  12. Abby

    DH and I have been house hunting for the last ~3 months, found the PERFECT one on Thursday and just heard back that we got it!!

  13. Anon

    Does anyone have a script for responding gracefully when it comes up at work that you have a lot more disposable income than your boss, grandboss, etc.? For a variety of reasons (mainly family size and spouse’s income) I seem to have a lot more disposable income than many of the people I work with who are much more senior than me. I don’t live a very flashy lifestyle, so the main way this comes up is travel. In normal times, it’s not uncommon for us to take several nice vacations a year, at least two of which are international. The people I work with, even the execs, take road trips and go camping. A “big” vacation for a lot of them is flying to Florida. I recently traveled internationally for the first time since the start of the pandemic and people are just going on and on about how they can’t believe I went to Europe, that’s so fancy, I’m so lucky, this is a once in a lifetime trip etc. And I get that it is for a lot of people! But I have at least two more international trips planned for 2022. I don’t want people to think I’m so rich I don’t need to work (that’s definitely not the case) and don’t want to seem smug or braggy, but I’m not sure how best to respond when this aspect of my lifestyle is so different than other people’s.

    • Anonymous

      Well, they won’t be able to comment that the second international trip in one year is a once-in-a-lifetime thing.

    • anon

      I don’t think you say anything, other than yes, I feel fortunate for the opportunity.

      Also, I wouldn’t assume that your superiors don’t have the money to travel. Just … not everybody is into international travel, though that seems to be a sin to admit these days.

      • Anon

        yeah, I mean I’m sure they have the money to travel more than they do. They’re definitely not poor. But I guess I’d feel less weird about it if they acted like they didn’t care about travel. That’s fine – I get that not everyone loves to travel, certainly not to the degree I do (we put virtually all our disposable income towards it). But they act like they’re so jealous of me getting to take a trip like this, which then makes things feel awkward.

        • Anon

          That’s what you say – “we love travel so much that we put all of our yearly fun money towards it!”

    • anon

      I would just say something like “yes! I’m so excited about vacation to [XYZ]” or say you’re making up for lost COVID travel. There is no reason to bring up your DI in this situation, and doing so would be rude and lack tact IMO.

    • anon

      Can you treat it as just differing priorities, not differing levels of disposable income? Maybe their money goes to other choices that would seem luxurious/excessive to you. So, just, something like “I love traveling and am so excited to be able to start going abroad again!”

      • Senior Attorney

        “Well, this is really important to us so we do what it takes to make it happen!”

        • Of Counsel

          Senior Attorney (as she so often does) has it right! I posted this morning about multiple trips to Tahiti and believe me I got a lot of comments when co-workers heard I was going there the second, third, etc. time. My response was always some variation of “I prioritize travel over everything except retirement.” (Or “there is a reason I drive [insert name of small, modest car here].”

          I will also say that I only do that if someone specifically mentions the expense. Otherwise, I feel no need to explain or justify and just say how much I am looking forward to it.

    • Anon

      I’ve never had $ and time at the same time, much less the time to take any real international trips once I had the $ to do so (just enough time off to take a long weekend here and there). Time is a luxury. Tending to family eats away at time. Having a family also can come with expenses (kids to put through college, parents in financial distress, sometimes both), so it’s disposable income (vs income generally) + disposable time in large-ish chunks to warrant international travel that are issues for some of us. I’d love to travel more and all over, but I feel like I have debts to pay and things to fund (house? condo purchase), so it’s a nope for me for the time being.

    • Anonymous

      I don’t think you need to address the disposable income part of it at all or make excuses or apologies. Just don’t act like they are poor or unsophisticated for not doing the same and you’ll be fine. I one day realized during a conversation about houses and cars that all of the support staff at my law firm live much better than I do because they started earning before I did, don’t have debt, and they are fairly well paid and have spouses who make good money. It was just a revelation and then I realized how dumb I had been for assuming otherwise.

    • anon

      Late to post. After working for zoom land for two years, everyone understands that there are say variations in income way more than you see in the office. Husband has to deal with this routinely as he started his current career later putting him age range closer to boss/grand boss plus my income. The advice is to just own it – they all know that its (mostly) my money. For him, he’s been able to leverage it as you cross paths with boss and grandboss at different events that you wouldn’t typically at your level. From what I’ve seen, what annoys people more is taking an attitude of “you can do this too if you just save” rather than just owning up (politely) to there being another source of income.

    • Anonymous

      Why do you assume it’s more income? It may just be different priorities around saving. I have a friend who frequently travels internationally. We’re in our mid-40s and and she just recently starting saving for retirement. Another friend invests in real estate with her fun money, and I guarantee she isn’t holding my trips to Turks and Caicos against me. As I get older, the more I’ve learned that those who count others’ money are usually very wrong. And judging how that money is spent is even more of a fools errand.

      • Anon

        Because they’re saying things like “oh wow, I wish I could afford to take a trip like that.” Also I know my household income is higher than theirs and they have student loan debt and more kids to support than I do. For sure people have different spending priorities and different attitudes about spending vs saving but in this case there’s more to it than that.

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