HOW TO: Make those tangly electrical cords invisible once and for all with these out of sight ideas

In this modern age of technology, it’s not uncommon to see a large tangle of electrical cords peeking out from behind a desk or even strewn across the counter.

Not only is this an eye sore, it can also pose a safety hazard.

But is there a solution to hiding those cables and keeping the messy look at bay?

Toshia Noye has a few tricks up her sleeve.

Noye was an interior designer for five years before opening her Tosh Co. Home Store in Charlottetown, PEI. Through her shop, she sells home goods, including everything from decor to lighting to furniture.

Although she no longer designs directly for clients, Noye is always ready to help clients with choices and advice while they are in store. That includes helping people create an aesthetically pleasing space — which includes hiding power cords.

“You could have the prettiest decor, but having wires hanging all over the place detracts from the overall look of your space,” Noye said.

Here are some of Noye’s ideas for hiding cords, not only from electronic devices, but also from household appliances and lamps.

Correct guidance

When decorating a console table with lamps or a desk in the middle of a room, Noye says it’s important to run the cords along the back of the table (or the side, whichever is visible) so they don’t get caught up and hung up all over the place become distracting.

Use cord clips with a sticky adhesive as they are perfect for running your cords along the back of your table and down one leg to reach the outlet. These cable sets are available through places like Amazon.

There’s a hole in your basket

Find a basket and cut a whole in the back.

You can place your TV modem or power strip in the basket, thread the cords through the hole in the back of the basket, and plug in. You then have perfectly hidden cables in a pretty basket, Noye said.

floor outlets

When decorating an open space, most people have their furniture removed from the walls and centered in the middle of the room. That’s nice, but can pose a challenge if you’re looking to add a table or floor lamp, Noye said.

For her 30-year-old home with a split entrance, Noye hired an electrician to add floor outlets to her living room. They strategically placed them where they wanted floor lamps and side table lamps so they wouldn’t have long cords to outlets.

That option might not be in the budget right now, but it’s definitely worth saving for, Noye suggested.

Under the carpet

If floor outlets aren’t an option at all, run your floor lamp’s cords under your couch and rug with some floor-friendly tape to keep them in place but hidden. You can see a bit of the cord, but it’s a lot better than seeing the whole thing. Carpet tape is perfect for not damaging your floors and sticky enough to keep your cords from moving.

Be comforted

Another console table solution is to find large baskets that fit underneath and hide any outlets or cords behind the baskets. You just want to make sure the baskets are big and wide enough to fill the space and hide anything you don’t want to see.

Make sure you measure the space and bring a tape measure when shopping so you get your basket purchase right the first time. This saves some of the frustration of running back and forth to the store.

assembly problems

“One of the biggest annoyances I find is dangling cords from a mounted TV,” Noye said.

This can be intimidating for some people, but there are kits that make hiding these cables super easy. Hiding those cords can be as simple as drilling a hole behind your TV and another hole under your outlet. You then fish the wires through the hole behind your TV, down the inside of your wall, and out the hole under your outlet.

Your TV and TV stand will cover up where the cables come out. Using a kit from Amazon makes the process easy and even includes the right drill bit for the perfect sized hole, Noye said.

Hide remote controls and chargers

Noye has some really cute options in their store for accommodating chargers and remote controls in a living space.

This could include keeping your remote controls on your side table in a pretty wooden tray.

“It’s nice to have them accessible, but it helps to keep them in one place and in something pretty,” she said.

Another option is to use small boxes with lids if you don’t want your charging cables and remote controls to be visible. They’re still easily accessible but hidden in a cute way, she says.

Anyone who would like more ideas or would like to purchase some decorative items to help with this process can find the Tosh Co. Home Store on Facebook and Instagram. Noye gives lots of advice and decorating tips in her highlights section on Instagram.

Soon she will be launching her website toshco.ca and shipping across Canada.