Familiar sight, the phone charger cord on the floor? It drove me mad that’s for sure. I tried to lay it on the table and have it stay there but it just wouldn’t. And with these smart phones that you need to charge as often as once a day (or is it just mine?!) you really need the end of that charger to be accessible. I’ve seen some great ideas online such as this one but there aren’t any bulldog clips with a mouth wide enough for my desk top so I had to invent something myself.
Enter two small pieces of Velcro. One with a sticky back side and one regular. I love Velcro! I stuck the sticky one to the side of my desk top…
… placed my cord against it and covered it with the other piece.
The cord can easily be pulled up so it can reach the phone and it can also easily be removed by pulling to top piece off if needed for traveling. It glides perfectly within the Velcro. Did I tell you I love Velcro?
So instead of that top view with the cord on the floor I have this. Bliss. And now I’m off to go check if Wille wants this solution on his charger too!
Hi,
I was wondering if you know how much electricity your charger needs if he is plugged in all the time....Mine says that you have to unplug it after charging because it takes a lot !!!!????
I like to read your blog and I am jealous how need and organized your home is....with two little kids and working ...the chaos will never end.....
Have a nice day....
Posted by: anonym | September 18, 2012 at 07:16 AM
I'm so going to do this! I saw the bulldog clip on Pinterest as well, but like you my desk is too thick. So clever you are. Thanks!!
Posted by: Paula | September 18, 2012 at 07:21 AM
Brilliant! (of course...)
And my phone needs charging AT LEAST once a day.
Posted by: Suzanne | September 18, 2012 at 07:24 AM
I guess it's like with all those gadgets that are on "stand by", they do need electricity but I'm just too lazy to turn everything off when I do use it every day.
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | September 18, 2012 at 07:31 AM
wow, so brilliant yet simple
Posted by: sevi | September 18, 2012 at 07:49 AM
Clever idea! But you have a black iPhone? Mine is white, I love white ;)
Posted by: Maja | September 18, 2012 at 08:06 AM
Is there birch coloured velcro? Unfortunately both my desk and the shelves where we charge our stuff are not simply white.
Guess white velcro on wood(imitation) would look odd, just like the dear kids sticked sth there as they always do*sigh*
nice idea though! Has Wille some now, too?;-)
Posted by: Katharina | September 18, 2012 at 08:17 AM
i don't turn all my apps off everyday, but when i'm going out and know that i'll be using my phone a bunch, and likely only on a couple aps (hello facebook!), i'll close the rest to save my battery.
i only just learned about this ability to turn off the apps a couple months ago, after having my iphone for over a year (and getting more and more frustrated that i had to charge it more and more often)!
and, here's what we use to keep cables on the tables: http://www.likecool.com/CableDrop_Cable_Holder--Desktop--Gear.html
Posted by: wendy | September 18, 2012 at 08:31 AM
very clever. i'll try it. x
Posted by: elisa | September 18, 2012 at 08:34 AM
I got a black one from work. Had I had a choice it would be white obviously :).
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | September 18, 2012 at 09:04 AM
Ah so nifty. Got to copy this.
Posted by: Leena | September 18, 2012 at 09:11 AM
I use these ones http://shop.textalk.se/se/article.php?id=22627&art=8585030
Posted by: Nini Tjäder | September 18, 2012 at 10:40 AM
Also found here http://www.bluelounge.com/products/cabledrop/
It is really good.
Posted by: Nini Tjäder | September 18, 2012 at 10:45 AM
Liked that Pinterest folder "Smart ideas" of yours!
Posted by: Fröken Prickig | September 18, 2012 at 01:47 PM
Nice tip today... I love Velcro, too. I remember when the ripping sound was referred to as the mating call of the 80's!
Posted by: Jules Means | September 18, 2012 at 02:42 PM
Haha!
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | September 18, 2012 at 03:25 PM
Benita, I found your site about 2 weeks ago, and just fell in love with your house...
It took me one week to read everything, since 2008. Since I love books, it felt like a deco magazine and I read it all, from the old house to the new one.
Everything is just lovely and I admire your skills to build / assemble / paint / create / organize.
I am totally disorganized and to me it is a daily battle with my own self to keep everything in its place.
You've become a great inspiration to me.
Thanks for sharing a big part of yur life with us.
Wish you all the best!
Posted by: Samysy | September 18, 2012 at 03:52 PM
Genius, sheer genuius!
Posted by: Kathleen S. | September 18, 2012 at 04:19 PM
Velcro does come in a tan color, though, like band-aids, it won't blend with every shade of wood. Lol!
Posted by: Lisa Flaherty | September 18, 2012 at 04:40 PM
Always thinking! Love it!
Posted by: Lisa Flaherty | September 18, 2012 at 04:42 PM
I find the GPS map ap the one that runs the battery down the fastest. I always make sure to turn that when off when I'm finished with it....as I'm usually going somewhere and the phone runs down when I'm not near a charger.
Posted by: Renee | September 18, 2012 at 04:55 PM
Brilliant! I am so doing this!!
Thought you might like this..
http://ohhappyday.com/2012/09/white-floors/
Posted by: -M | September 18, 2012 at 05:07 PM
I saw that :)
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | September 18, 2012 at 06:49 PM
This is exactly the solution that I need! Just today, my phone charger fell behind my desk, and I had to scramble on all fours just to retrieve it. Velcro, what a beautiful invention!!!
Posted by: Mandy Davis | September 18, 2012 at 07:40 PM
Or you could go wireless charging and have a fatboy charging pillow :) much neater and cooler ;)
http://www.google.com/search?q=fatboy+charging+pillow+white&hl=en&client=safari&tbo=u&tbm=isch&source=univ&sa=X&ei=gLtYUI3HAY2B4ATX5IEQ&ved=0CFIQsAQ&biw=1024&bih=672
Posted by: AC | September 18, 2012 at 08:22 PM
Do you find that case to have overly sensitive silver buttons? I had it but it kept powering off my phone :(
Posted by: Kate | September 19, 2012 at 05:34 AM
I've had no problem. Is yours an apple original?
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | September 19, 2012 at 07:40 AM
Yes it was an apple original. Perhaps I might re buy it and hope it was just a faulty one or alter it to not be so button sensitive.... Any tips?
Posted by: Kate | September 20, 2012 at 05:33 AM
i have the same problem, my table is birch-coloured too! the velcro i bought (b4 i bought the table) was BLACK. sighs. have not seen any tan-coloured ones around where i live, only blk & white ones...BUT maybe i can get white and stick it to my white table leg instead.
Posted by: Tracy | September 22, 2012 at 08:49 AM
Hi, I just wanted to ask if the IKEA drawers have nice and smooth opening/closing for u becoz when I tried the display one at the store, it felt quite difficult to open/ close the drawers...not as smooth as I would like my drawers to be...any problems when doing that for u? I think we're more used to wood and not metal drawers here...
Posted by: Tracy | September 22, 2012 at 08:53 AM
Those display samples can be a bit abused so it's probably worse off than one you would have at home. Mine is fine. It's not like a wooden drawer but it's perfectly fine. The whole drawer unit tends to roll a little when you pull a drawer though because of the wheels underneath.
Posted by: Benita ~ Chez Larsson | September 22, 2012 at 08:58 AM
yeah I thought so too :) thanks for letting me know abt the rolling...I'll consider a bit longer whether to get it...
Posted by: Tracy | September 23, 2012 at 09:54 AM