Bianca MullerWe spend hours choosing paint colours, cushions and furniture, only for a handful of cables to undo all that hard work. From the tangle behind the TV to the charger trailing across your bedside table, cords have a habit of making themselves at home wherever they aren’t wanted.
Match cords to the wall
Sometimes the simplest solution is the most effective. If a cable has to run along a wall, choose a cable cover or trunking in a colour that closely matches the wall. Many covers can also be painted, allowing you to make them blend into the background.
For a more seamless look, use the same colour as the skirting board if the cable is running along the bottom of the wall. A white cable against a white skirting board is far less noticeable than one trailing diagonally across a wall.
Tip: Rather than choosing a thick cover when a slimmer option will do, select the smallest suitable cable management solution for the cords you need to conceal.
Run cords behind furniture
Your furniture can do a surprising amount of hiding for you. Position desks, consoles, sideboards and bookcases between the visible cable and the room wherever possible.
A TV console, for example, can hide cables running from the television down towards the plug point, while a desk can conceal wires for a computer, monitor and lamp.
Just don’t push furniture tightly against a cord or trap it beneath something heavy. Damaged or pinched cords can become a safety hazard.
Use cable clips to create a neat route
If you have several cables running in the same direction, don’t let them wander independently. Group them together and use suitable cable clips or cable-management channels to create one tidy route.
This works particularly well behind a desk or entertainment unit, where several devices may need to reach the same power source.
The trick: Think about the route before sticking anything down. Follow the edges of furniture or architectural features rather than creating a random line across the wall.
Hide the power strip in a cable box
A power strip can be one of the messiest parts of a home office or entertainment area. Instead of leaving it surrounded by a nest of cables, place the power strip inside a purpose-designed cable-management box, with the cords entering and exiting through the openings.
It instantly makes a desk or TV unit look more considered and keeps loose cables together.
Choose a ventilated product designed for cable management rather than putting a power strip in an ordinary closed container.
Make the back of your desk a no-tangle zone
Home offices are particularly prone to cable chaos. Start by deciding which devices actually need to stay plugged in, then group their cables according to where they need to go.
Attach a cable-management tray underneath the desk to keep excess wiring off the floor. Cable clips can keep individual charging leads close to the edge of the desk, while reusable cable ties can stop longer cables from becoming tangled.
Bonus trick: Label chargers at the end that plugs into the power strip. It saves you from pulling everything apart when you’re trying to identify which cable belongs to which device.
Use a basket for charging cables
If your family has a collection of phones, tablets and other devices that seem to accumulate charging cables everywhere, create a dedicated charging station.
A basket, drawer or small organiser can house the cables when they’re not being used. For a particularly neat setup, use dividers to keep different cables separated.
You can even place the charging station inside a cabinet, provided the arrangement allows the cables to be used safely without pinching or overheating them.
Conceal cables behind a gallery wall
A gallery wall can do double duty. If you have a wall-mounted lamp, speaker or other low-voltage device, plan the cable route around your artwork or decorative objects so that it becomes much less noticeable.
The key is to keep the route tidy rather than simply hiding a mess behind the pictures. Cables should never be placed where they could become damaged or trapped.
Turn the cord into part of the decor
Not every cord needs to disappear completely. If hiding it isn’t practical, make it look intentional.
A fabric-covered lamp cord can complement the colours and textures in a room, while a carefully routed decorative cable can become part of the styling around a desk or bedside table.
This works especially well with lamps, where the cord can be treated as another design detail rather than something that needs to be completely invisible.
Hide router cables behind a console
Routers and modems are rarely the most attractive things in a room, and their cables don’t help. A console, sideboard or shelving unit can help conceal the wiring while still leaving enough ventilation around the equipment.
Use cable clips behind the furniture to keep wires together and route them towards the nearest outlet.
Remember: Don’t cover or enclose networking equipment in a way that blocks ventilation or causes it to overheat.
Use a hollow piece of furniture
Some desks, bedside tables and TV units are designed with cable-management holes or channels built into them. If you’re buying new furniture, look for these small details.
A cable hole at the back of a desk can allow a charging cable to emerge neatly on the desktop, while a channel at the back of an entertainment unit can keep several wires together.
If you’re buying furniture specifically for a home office, cable management is worth considering alongside storage and aesthetics.
Hide lamp cords along skirting boards
For floor lamps, the skirting board is often your best friend. Instead of allowing the cord to take the shortest route diagonally across the floor, position the lamp so the cable can run neatly alongside the edge of the room.
Use appropriate, removable cable-management products to keep it in place.
However, don’t run electrical cords underneath rugs or carpets to conceal them. Cords need to remain accessible and should not be covered in a way that can trap heat.
Paint the cable cover
If a cable cover is still visible, make it match.
A paintable cable raceway can be painted in the same shade as the wall, skirting board or trim. This is particularly useful when you’re renting and don’t want to make permanent changes.
For the neatest finish, follow the straightest architectural line available – along a skirting board, around a door frame or vertically beside a piece of furniture.
Create a dedicated charging drawer
A drawer with a cable-management opening can transform a messy charging area into something that looks completely ordinary.
Place the power source in a suitable location and feed only the necessary cables through the back or a purpose-designed opening. Inside the drawer, use small organisers to stop cables becoming tangled.
Styling trick: Keep only the chargers you regularly use here. A drawer full of mysterious cables isn’t really a storage solution.
Use cable sleeves for multiple wires
When several cords need to travel together, a cable sleeve can turn five or six loose wires into one tidy bundle.
They’re particularly useful behind computers, televisions and entertainment systems. Choose a sleeve that is easy to open so you can add or remove cables without dismantling the whole setup.
Hide cables inside a TV cabinet
A TV cabinet is one of the easiest places to conceal wires because most of the equipment is already gathered in one area.
Position the power strip towards the back, group cables by device and use cable ties or clips to keep them organised. Leave enough slack for cleaning and for safely moving equipment when necessary.
Don’t cram electrical equipment into a sealed space or cover ventilation openings.
Think vertically
If a cable needs to travel from a wall-mounted TV, artwork or light fitting towards an outlet, a vertical route can look far neater than a diagonal one.
Following existing lines in the room – such as the edge of a door frame or wall trim – makes the cable less visually distracting.
Hide bedside cables in a cable organiser
Bedside tables are another cable hotspot. Keep charging cables from sliding behind the furniture by attaching a small cable clip to the back or side of the bedside table.
For a more permanent solution, choose a bedside table with built-in cable management or a drawer that can double as a charging station.
Use colour deliberately
If you can’t hide a cord, don’t automatically choose white.
A black cable can disappear against a dark wall or furniture, while a beige or cream cable may be less noticeable against warm neutral interiors. The goal is to reduce contrast between the cord and its surroundings.
You can also coordinate cable-management accessories with the room rather than treating them as an afterthought.
Hide excess cable length – without creating a hazard
Long cords tend to create the biggest mess, so avoid leaving metres of unnecessary cable trailing around.
Use a suitable cable-management accessory to organise excess length rather than tightly wrapping a cable while it is in use. Cords should not be left coiled or covered in a way that can cause heat to build up.
When it’s worth calling an electrician
Sometimes the best way to hide a cable is to avoid having a long visible cable in the first place.
If you’re constantly relying on extension cords because an outlet is in the wrong place, consider asking a qualified electrician whether an additional outlet can be installed. Heavy reliance on extension cords can indicate that your home’s outlets aren’t positioned where you need them.
Electrical work, including installing or altering fixed wiring, should be left to a suitably qualified professional.
Cord-hiding mistakes to avoid
Making cords look tidy shouldn’t come at the expense of electrical safety. Avoid:
- Running extension cords underneath carpets or rugs.
- Pinching cords underneath furniture, doors or windows.
- Nailing or stapling electrical cords to walls or skirting boards.
- Running extension cords through walls, ceilings or floors.
- Connecting extension cords to one another.
- Overloading power strips or extension cords.
- Using damaged, frayed or hot cords.
- Using extension cords as a permanent substitute for proper wiring.
If a cord is damaged, replace it rather than trying to hide the damage.
The easiest way to make cords disappear
The secret to good cable management isn’t necessarily hiding every single wire. It’s about creating a deliberate route for the cords you do need. Start by grouping cables, shortening unnecessary runs, following the edges of furniture and walls, and choosing cable-management products that blend into your home.
And if you’re planning a renovation or buying new furniture, think about cable management before the room is finished. A well-placed outlet, a desk with built-in cable management or a TV unit designed to hide wiring can save you from fighting the cable jungle later.
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Featured image: Pexels
