How a Loft Bedroom Struggle Led to the Invention of the Zebedee Hanging Rail

Loft bedrooms can be magical spaces… until you try to furnish them. My own loft conversion — with sloping ceilings at both ends — felt cramped, unbalanced, and anything but relaxing. The space looked wonderful in theory, but living with it was another story.

And although I didn’t know it at the time, this uncomfortable experience would eventually lead me to create something completely new: the Zebedee Hanging Rail.

This is the story of how my awkward bedroom inspired an invention, why angled hanging rails didn’t exist anywhere in the world, and how my journey unexpectedly led me onto BBC’s Dragons’ Den.

Along the way, you’ll discover what makes  Zebedee so special, why it transforms loft spaces, and how turning frustration into innovation became one of the biggest adventures of my life.

Why Was My Loft Bedroom So Difficult to Live With?

My bedroom sat tucked into a loft conversion, with the ceiling sloping sharply on both sides of the room. It was charming — in theory. Yet the moment I tried to furnish it, everything fell apart.

Like many people, I moved in with the freestanding wardrobes I already owned. They were tall, heavy, and designed for regular rooms with regular ceilings. In my loft bedroom, they just took over. Because they could only fit in the one area with full standing height, they dominated the centre of the room.

That meant my bed — the supposed heart of any bedroom — had to be shoved into a tight corner beneath the sloping ceiling.

I knew the problem wasn’t the room. It was how the furniture interacted with the room’s architecture. I needed a solution designed for sloped ceilings, not one that tried to fight them.

That’s when the idea began forming…

What If My Wardrobe Followed the Angle of the Ceiling?

One morning, having a cup of tea in bed, I had a simple thought:

“Why don’t I just hang clothes along the slanted ceiling instead?”

If I could find rails that matched the pitch of my roof, I could reposition my wardrobe area to one end of the room and finally free up the rest. I pictured a calm, open bedroom with my bed centred where it belonged — and a clever wardrobe zone that embraced the unique shape of the loft.

It felt like the perfect solution.

There was just one major flaw…

Why Didn’t Angled Hanging Rails Exist Anywhere?

As soon as I had the idea, I went searching. I checked local hardware stores. I searched online. I messaged suppliers. I even looked internationally.

But angled hanging rails didn’t exist.
Not one. Not anywhere.

This made no sense to me. Loft conversions, attic rooms, under‑stairs nooks — angled ceilings appear in homes everywhere. People have been struggling with these awkward spaces for decades.

So why was there no such thing as an adjustable, angle‑friendly clothes rail?

The more I searched, the more baffled I became.

But I am a practical person. Before this, as a side line, I ran an on line retro industrial furniture business, restoring retro furniture. I fix things. I solve problems. And I had already renovated two homes largely on my own.

So when the solution I needed didn’t exist, the next step became obvious…

How Do You Invent Something That Doesn’t Exist?

If I couldn’t buy an angled rail, I would design one.

I began sketching ideas, experimenting with angles, brackets, hooks, and configurations. I needed something strong, attractive, simple to install, and completely adjustable — something that could be fitted at any angle.

Three prototypes later, something clicked.
The shape worked.
The angles matched.
The rail held weight beautifully.

This was the beginning of what would become the Zebedee Hanging Rail.

I installed the early version in my loft bedroom and stood back in surprise.

It worked — perfectly.

What Happened When I Installed the First Zebedee Hanging Rail?

The moment the new angled rail went up, my entire bedroom changed.

By moving my hanging space to the sloped end of the room, I could remove the huge freestanding wardrobes completely. Suddenly:

• My bedroom almost doubled in usable space
• The bed could finally sit centrally with space on each side
• The room felt bigger, brighter, and more balanced
• I had oodles of full‑length hanging space instead of cramped cupboards
• My clothing was easy to see and access
• I could add storage boxes under the rail
  

Everything felt intentional. Everything made sense.

The sloped ceiling wasn’t a problem anymore — it became a feature.

And that’s when I realised:
This wasn’t just a fix for my room.
This was a product that other people desperately needed too.

How Did the Zebedee Hanging Rail Turn Into a Business?

At first, I created the rail purely for myself, just to improve my own loft bedroom. But friends and family,  kept saying the same thing:

“This is brilliant — why didn’t this exist already?”

I knew I had something special: a truly original solution to a very common problem. And had to go for it as a business! The Zebedee Hanging Rail became more than just a clever DIY fix. It became a business.

This is the part of the story most founders don’t talk about — the emotional leap from private idea to public product. I wasn’t looking to create a brand. I was simply trying to make my home feel like home. But the product solved such a universal issue that the business built itself.

Then something unexpected happened…

What Happened When Dragons’ Den Contacted Me?

A few years down the line, in March 2023, I received an email claiming to be from a BBC researcher asking if I’d consider appearing on Dragons’ Den.

Naturally, I assumed it was a scam.

But after a bit of cautious checking, it turned out to be real.

Now, you should know something about me:
I had always said I would never, ever go on Dragons’ Den. I don’t enjoy cameras. I don’t seek attention. And the idea of pitching on national TV was terrifying.

I initially said no.
But they asked me to just think about it.

So over a bank holiday weekend, I did. And I realised something important:

If I let fear stop me, I wasn’t just letting myself down — I was letting the Zebedee Hanging Rail down too. This invention had helped so many people reclaim awkward spaces, and I knew I owed it a proper chance to grow.

So I said yes.

The preparation was intense — months of paperwork, video pitches, product testing, memorising seven years of accounts, learning my pitch forwards, backwards, and upside-down.

I even built a “memory palace” in my workshop to memorise figures.

The process was long. It was exhausting. But it was worth it.

What Was It Like to Stand in the Den?

Terrifying.
Inspiring.
Unforgettable.

With my friend Tracy by my side, props loaded into the van, we travelled to Manchester the day before filming. The morning was a blur of drills, makeup, nerves, and rehearsal.

Four hours later, I walked out with an offer.

It wasn’t the offer I originally wanted, but I knew I had to accept it in order to explore the options further. The process afterward was just as tough — from legal steps to production planning to preparing for the airing — I actually grew more and more nervous, and if I could have cancelled it the week before I would have! 

When the episode finally aired, the response was overwhelming. Customers from years back sent photos of their installations. Orders increased. Support poured in.

The Zebedee Hanging Rail had changed my home — and now it was changing my life too.

Why the Zebedee Hanging Rail Works Wherever Angles Exist

The beauty of the Zebedee hanging rail is its simplicity:

• It fits virtually any angle
• It makes sloped ceilings useful
• It creates full‑length hanging space
• It removes the need for clunky wardrobes
• It works in lofts, attics, under stairs, eaves, dormers, and more
• It looks minimal and modern
• It frees floor space dramatically
• It lets you add accessories like shoe racks, drawers, baskets
• It solves a problem no other product solves
• Its equally effective in wardrobes and on its own

If you have a sloped ceiling, Zebedee gives you back space you didn’t realise you were losing.

It is simple.
It is strong.
It is original.
And it exists because loft rooms deserve furniture that understands them.

Final Thoughts

I never planned to invent a product.
I never planned to go on Dragons’ Den.
I never planned to start a business.

I simply wanted my bedroom to feel right.

But that small need turned into a big solution — and today the Zebedee Hanging Rail is helping people all over the world reclaim awkward spaces, create better wardrobe layouts, and finally enjoy their loft rooms the way they were meant to be enjoyed.

Thank you for being part of this journey.

— Diane x

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