I am convinced that unless you custom design and build your home you will have things that will make you say, “why on earth did they do that when they built this house??”
Am I right? You have those things in your home too, don’t you?
Outlets in the wrong place. Or no outlet where there should be one!
Or, for example, a phone jack in the middle of one wall with the outlet for the answering machine on the other wall?
And, I know, we are probably the only people left who still actually use our land-line and an answering machine but there you have it. We do.
I made a half-hearted attempt at disguising the cord running across the wall by hanging up a bulletin board but frankly the entire area looked just pitiful. And if the kitchen desk was messy (which it usually is!) then it only added to the whole “dumping ground” affect going on.
So, when I found this metal organizer at TJ Maxx the other day a light bulb went off!
Would it work? Could it be the answer to my unsightly phone jack problem?
Why, yes it was! I just positioned it so that it would hang right over the phone jack and it worked like a charm. The phone now sits comfortably in the bottom rack and there is still plenty of room for all of our “stuff”.
Plus, it forced me to spruce up the desk area. Which lasted oh…just long enough to take these photos!
Mason jars make cute holders for pens and scissors which I still have to keep out of reach of my youngest thanks to the “cutting-of-hair-right-before-Christmas-incident-of-2012”.
Unfortunately, a cord still stretches across the wall from the phone to the outlet on the other wall. Wouldn’t life be better if we could have electricity without cords? They really cramp my decorating style, you know? But, by painting it the same color as the wall I was able to disguise it a little bit.
Don’t blink! This will probably be the only time this desk doesn’t have mail or homework or markers or Lalaloopsy dolls or Legos on top of it and you wouldn’t want to miss it!
Want to see some more clever solutions for disguising unsightly things in your home? Check out these ideas!
Disguise a wall vent AND create a display wall like Eclectically Vintage
Hide Your Garage Door Opener like My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Create a wall collage to disguise outlets and thermostat like Jones Design Company.
Use a Tray to Hide Outlets from Organize and Decorate Everything
Why not disguise an ugly wall vent with a doormat like Debbiedoos?
And Tami from Curb Alert?
From One Kings Lane a hinged painting hides control panels or other unsightly outlets.
And if you just need to change out an old and ugly outlet, Pretty Handy Girl can show you how!
I love creative solutions to everyday problems, don’t you?
Thanks so much for helping me say farewell to “jack” today! 😉
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Awesome! I love all these ideas. Thanks for sharing!
We still have a land line and answering machine (that I rarely check – sorry everyone that left a message 3 months ago)!
Ah, the hair cutting incident. I found beautiful blonde curls in the toilet years ago — and a few chunks missing from my girls hair. Yes, one twin gave the other a haircut.
Builders – stop putting these unsightly things in plain view!
Kelly
very smart! love the idea of the hinged painting!
Great idea. Those other solutions are pretty cool too. Have a great weekend.
Vanessa, your disguise is perfect! I always try and hide them, too…it’s great too see other unique ways that people come up with. I have one in my “Settling into Our New Home” post. I’m back with creations and décor in our new home in N.C. I hope you’ll have time to stop by! It’s feels great to be back in the “loop” again!
have a great Holiday weekend!
Janet/JP
OMGosh – this is a great post full of great resources too. Your basket for your phone was the perfect find – I love it!! Thanks for sharing!
xoxo, Claire
Oh my! We have the SAME phone jack thingy in our kitchen! That sucker is huge and thick and STUCK. Thanks for the great idea!
I couldn’t stand the cords from telephone to phone jack. I found a solution that worked for me. Mine was in the kitchen. I used small subway tiles and tiled OVER the wires. Of course, I’ll never be able to use them again, but they are cheap. I cut a groove in the wall where the wires could rest flush with the wall and then tiled over them. I smile every time I see my handy work.
Excellent idea! I forget about TJ Maxx for home items; must go soon. I recently covered up our (unused) land line jack with a coffee station. The old ammo box turned on its side is tall enough to hide the jack and still deep enough for the bean jar, etc.
What a great idea! Love it!
Awesome ideas!!! Love it!!~~Angela
Great job! I love that organizer 🙂 And I’m with you on the whole cord issue. Even hidden behind the computer monitor i had the dirty dusty mess that ends up there in the tangle of cords.
Brilliant! Oh yes I have one of those too.Took me awhile to figure it out but finally my solution was a cabinet with a hole in the back for access to the outlet.Doors closed it has sa chalk board for notes :-).I drilled holes on the side for the cords.
xx
Anne
Wireless electricity sound like a dreamy idea … hmmm …
Oh, and while I’m on it, how about universal chargers?
I love your solution. I barely even noticed the cord in the “after” — until you pointed it out! LOL!
Have a super fabulous long weekend holiday!!!!
🙂 Linda
Fabulous! I love that rack!! oh and I also still have the ol’ land-line-plus-answering-machine-telephone going on. I think it’s on its last legs though so I may be converting to cell only someday soon…
Happy Friday!
I’m having the same problem with the phone jack in the kitchen. The metal rack certainly did the trick for you. I just need to find the right item for my space. Thanks for all the inspiration!
Hope you are having a wonderful holiday weekend!
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Seriously a great collection of helpful ideas! Love it!
Boy could I relate to this post! I have a phone jack up high on the wall in my kitchen where we used to hang a phone. Now, we don’t use it anymore. I always have to hang a picture there to hide it. Also, I don’t have an outlet in my foyer behind the chest of drawers. So, I had to run an extension cord around the stairs to the dining room! Got to get creative. LOL! My husband used a sticky back cord cover to conceal it so no one really notices it lining the base of the wall with the trim. I love your wire organizer!! It’s so cute and looks perfect in that spot.
Genius fix for the phone wall! Love all these ideas, thanks so much for sharing this.
Jeanette
Love these great ideas. Since we are building our new house, I asked the builder to put our outlets sideways into the baseboards which are over-sized any way. I like the ideas for covering air returns so I may just have to try one of these. I like how your curated several ideas too. Have a blessed day.
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