Whether it’s your kitchen (toaster, coffee maker, and electric juicer), your TV room (flat screen, speakers, DVD player, and Xbox), or your office (computers, modems, and cell phone chargers), those @#$*%ing cords are taking over your life. They can turn even the most pristine room into a tangled mess. Luckily, there are some things you can do:
Add WI-FI Antennae
Give your laptop a wireless Internet connection. A router (which sends out the Internet signal into the air) can be purchased from your cable provider, or you can buy one for under $50 and hook it to your cable modem yourself.
Hijack Your Phone
Not only are there wireless phones, there're also wireless phone jacks. Simply plug the small device (which costs about $80 at an electronics store or online) into the jack (no cords), and it will emit a signal to your phones.
Maximize Your Outlets
We don’t mean using ugly power strips. Instead, use an outlet adapter to turn two plugs into six, and plug away! Be careful not to overload.
Combine and Cover
For thicker computer and television cords, use a tubelike product that wraps and merges about 10 cords into one thick cylinder. Cabletiesandmore.com sells Wire Loom in various blendable colors starting at 53 cents.
Clip and Stick
Secure an unsightly single cord along a door frame or underneath a windowsill by using adhesive clips -- it'll just blend in, and you’ll never have to worry about tripping over it again.
Group Your Bunches
For an extremely inexpensive option, simply bind a bunch of cords together that are going in the same direction using Velcro strips from the garden shop (the kind used to hold tomato plants to their stakes) and cover them with furniture. Sticky tape, however, isn’t a great idea. The wires can get warm and melt the tape.
Thread Through
If your desktop electronics are unruly, install a cable grommet ($4, cableorganizer.com) into your desk and wiggle the cords through it (you need to drill a hole if your desk doesn’t have one) instead of snaking them around your tape dispenser.
Polish the Look
You can make your cords look like a design feature by covering them with a chair rail or baseboard that lets them run along the wall to the outlet without being spotted. Wiremold.com has a variety of moldings that can do the job.
Hire Help
If all else fails, you can always add new outlets to rooms with the help of an electrician. You’ll still want to keep them straight and orderly, but this will limit the amount of cord crossover.
by Natalie Ermann Russell
6/19/08
See more:
cleaning & organizing,
Decor Tricks