One of the good things that came from the gecko running behind the coat hooks and the coat hooks coming out from the wall as the cat, dog, and I scrambled for the critter, is that it prompted me to find a better way to secure the horse shoe hooks to the wall. I love these hooks that my husband’s cousins made when they were learning to weld. I have four of them and they work great on solid wood. I tried having two on the wall by the back door, and tried to get the tiny nails that would fit in the nail holes to reach far enough into a stud, but they consistently came loose. So now I had to do something sturdier. I combed the garage and found a nice length of 1×4” trim, already painted. But it was shorter than the horse shoes. Hmm. If I set the horse shoes up above the rail, then I would be able to use the tops as hooks as well, increasing the number of usable hooks from two to six. And if I added the other horse shoe I had sitting on the counter, then I would have eight hooks!

I attached the board to the wall, centering it on the studs, checking level, and running two screws into the studs. Then I took finish nails that had heads large enough to not go all the way through the horse shoe holes and set the metal lined up with the bottom of the board. I used a nail set to tap the nails down into the shoe to keep it firmly attached.

Now we have a sturdy coat rack! The best part? I only had one trip to the garage. I was able to anticipate everything I would need, gather it, and use it all. It is unusual for me not to have to make a few trips back and forth for forgotten items. (Yes, I did put everything away as soon as I was done!)