We’re plugging away at organizing an out-of-control power cord situation in our home. We’ve now powered-through reviews and testing of cord storage boxes, cute outlet boxes, power stations for our phones/watches/etc.,, and power control central stations. And we’re doing this from our kitchen, which for the better part of a year, has functioned as a home office, virtual classroom for three kids, and an actual, active kitchen.

I’m sure many of you can relate.

12 Cord Clutter Solutions To Upgrade Your Work From Home Setup

What I’ve recently learned is that it IS possible to get the cords under control, and, yes, even have them look pretty while remaining exactly where you need them (when you need them). How we got there ended up being unique to each individual — so we have many different solutions for each person in our house, and I’ve included a few notes and lessons learned below.

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Home Office Inspo: How To Hide Computer Cords

1 | Extō Surge Protected Outlet Box

This sweet guy is my favorite in terms of aesthetics. He comes in three colorways. This is the solution we landed-on for my 12-year-old son, who charges his headphones, iPhone, MacBook, Switch, and portable power block at his desk. We located his desk specifically above an outlet, so what we see now is simply this one lovely cord draping down to the floor from the desk top. This block is adorable empty. Once he loads it, yes, then all of those cords are on his desk, but he’s fairly tidy, so he’s OK with them coiled and is using straps below as well. Also, my kids bounce back and forth between their Dad’s house and here, so he appreciates being able to unplug and pack all his power cords easily. He’s good with them being on his desk because he tells me that makes it easy to pack and unpack, more so than when his old power strip was on his floor and he was constantly tripping over the cords and banging his head plugging and unplugging everything. This box is not a budget item, it’s rather expensive, it is however, built to last — so that helps. And note, it also has 2 USB integrated ports, which also helps.

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2 | Akwox Wooden Cable Organizer and Cord Management System

This one peels and sticks, to a desk or table edge and helps keep the cords themselves tidy, accessible and in line. It’s minimal, warm, and easy on the eyes. And it partners well with the boxes below where you can easily stash all the heavier, larger, working parts of the the power cords.

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3 | Kensington Smartsockets Surge Protector

This one has a 16′ cord, 4 integrated USB ports, and 6 power ports, which makes it perfect for a shared workspace or conference table, especially when your kitchen or dining table is said conference table. Also, some power cords and their extra large power blocks take up more space that just one port on a regular rectangular surge protector, which is frustrating. The round shape of this one allows for the bulky ones to fit next to one another more easily. We’ve had one of these for years and love it (along with many others who’ve also given it great reviews). It sits well on a table or on a floor, and stays put rather than the way that a traditional surge protector sometimes wrestles with itself.

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4 | Changsuo Cable Management Box Set Small & Large

This is my favorite purchase of the month: a set of two boxes, available in white or black. Grace, my youngest, is a brilliant, creative storm of I-don’t-even-know-what-happens-at-that-desk-of-hers, but it appears as though a tornado whipped through and requires massive clean-up every single day. She loves to make a mess, hates to clean-up, cringes when we say the word organized, and resists change (or anything new).

So I — very gently — asked her to please just try this, give it one day. (Her desk also happens to be the one in the center of the first floor of our home, right in the middle of everything, most visible, and most likely to be a trip and fall accident for all of us. And she is the one with the greatest number of devices.)

Now…thanks to these magic boxes, there is a power strip in the large box, the box sits on her desk, and one simple power cord drapes down to the outlet in the wall. All of the other power cords are in the box, which has plenty of ventilation, and a lid, so they are a mess in there, but one we don’t have to look at. And then all of the business-ends of all those cords for all of those devices, nicely sneak out the other side of the box. It’s working. It looks cute, she’s got power for everything, and while she hasn’t exactly said, “Thanks Mom,” as I watched her pack her school-desk in a canvas bag for her Dad’s the other morning, she simply unplugged and put the entire box in her canvas bag, looked at me and winked. That box best make it back, Grace.

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5 | The Power Tower

That’s not its actual name, it’s just how I affectionately refer to this little power house. It sits on a desktop or shelf. Its own plug is flat, which helps if it’s plugged in behind a piece of furniture. It has eight outlets (some say they aren’t spaced well,) but there are eight of them on two different sides, so that’s lots of options. It also has five integrated USB ports, and is a surge suppressor. Oh, and you can power on and off each side, so that you only draw what you are using. It’s not small, but it is efficient. And very well reviewed. And also comes in black, too.

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6 | Simple Strip

This is what my minimalist middle child has working to power her school-from-home desk. She doesn’t want anything extra, just what she needs, and this in fact, meets her needs. This smaller format also fits well inside the smaller of the two box set above. Its flat, right-angled plug is great for complicated spaces, and it’s 5-foot braided cord is cute too. Sometimes it’s the simplest things…

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7 | Good home Wooden Wireless Router Box

Has anyone else needed to relocate the router for better signal with all these people working and schooling from home? And does anyone else wonder why these things are just so not pretty? Here’s a way to pretty-it-up and improve signal: just mount this cute box to the ideal wall and tuck the power cord and router inside. It comes in two sizes, and even those two options will not accommodate all routers, so read the specifications and sizing carefully. It’s cute, if it works for your router, it’s a really pretty way to get better signal, and keep things organized.

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8 | 360 Electrical Gold Habitat Braided Extension Cord

Its own plug is low-profile, flat, and great for tight spaces. The 8′ braided cord is wrapped in gold (so pretty!), and kink resistant. This plug also has three power stations, so just enough for one efficient person, and also great for bedside power. This is the one we have for our turtle tank…where we need an outlet for the heater and the filter, but not a whole long situation, and where we don’t need USB. Even the turtle needs to be organized, and yes, he is also sharing this same community floor with us, and yes he’s a story for another day — but the short version is if the kids ever go back to school, I plan on sending the turtle there with them.

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9 | Belkin BOOST↑CHARGE

This is a genius 3-in-1 Wireless Charger for iPhone + Apple Watch + AirPods. This charger sits well on a desk or nightstand and is perfect for people who wouldn’t know what to do without those three pieces of tech, are constantly trying to find them, and/or find them too often low on charge. It’s sleek, efficient and a great gift for the Apple lover in your house.

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10 | Cable Zipper

These things are fantastic ways to gather cords, on a desktop, from a floor box or strip up the leg of a desk, or behind a TV. They are easy to use in a stationary setting where everything remains plugged-in for the most part, and where we really just need to gather cords together. I remember these well from office days lived long ago, I now appreciate their place in our home office(s).

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11 | NewFerU Non Adhesive Weighted Desk Cable Drop Clips

These drop clips come in black and white, and sets of two or four in all the combinations. They are weighted and clip, rather than adhesive based, which is helpful if you have family working at what really was, and one day again, will be your dining table, and you aren’t willing to adhere a cord sorter to it. They are a temporary solution, to what many of us hope is a temporary work-and-school-from-home situation. If the power sources are behind or below a desk or table, these are a great way to keep just what you need on the desk or table top for easy access.

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12 | Wrap-It Self-Gripping Storage Straps

These come in many sizes, and many colors. They are reusable, and are great for coiling everything that has a power cord that needs organizing. Also great for coiling cords in the secret mom drawer where we stash the spares. And for when we need to pack up and relocate to an actual office, client, or work site, and/or a kid from one house to another, or to a pod, or back and forth from school depending on which day and session of hybrid is happening. Logistics are complicated, coiling and strapping cords is easy.

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Sending our friends in Texas, Oregon, Louisiana, Kentucky, and everywhere without power, extra love and wishes for a strong recovery. We’ll do all we can to help from afar. There’s a power that comes from getting even just one little thing a little under control at home, especially these days. And there’s a super power that comes from learning the terrible, hard way, through real world tragedies, how we can all do better, together.
xoxo,
A

PS: Follow along with me on Pinterest for more Home Inspiration and other random distractions via pretty visuals. xo A

This one’s for the Pinners…