Final 12 months, I had a small transforming challenge that received a bit of out of hand. It will definitely led to me transforming my entire kitchen. That’s a narrative for one more day and one other weblog publish. Nonetheless, I’m actually grateful for a few of the adjustments that got here from this transform, particularly our new DIY charging drawer.
I added much more drawers within the backside cupboards as a result of they’re a lot extra sensible and usable. And by doing so, freed up lots of area. For the primary time, I used to be left with drawers I didn’t have a objective for. I remembered one thing I’d seen years in the past on Pinterest about making a charging drawer or docking drawer.
This has now grow to be one in all our most-used drawers (in all probability proper after the silverware and spice drawers). I like that it’s led to more healthy tech habits too.
On this publish, I’ll stroll you thru how I created a charging drawer with a drawer I already had. I’ll additionally clarify why it’s so vital to maintain our gadgets out of the bed room. Plus I’ll share how this small change has made a huge impact on our household’s tech habits.
Why It’s Essential to Maintain Gadgets Out of the Bed room
First, let’s speak about why having a charging drawer within the kitchen—or one other widespread space—is a game-changer. Particularly on the subject of your sleep hygiene and general well being. Many people are responsible of bringing our telephones into the bed room, whether or not it’s to examine social media, reply emails, or (let’s be sincere) scroll via countless reels. However there are some vital the reason why this won’t be the healthiest alternative.
The Influence of Blue Gentle on Sleep
Probably the most apparent causes to keep away from having gadgets close to your mattress is the impact of blue gentle on sleep. The screens of telephones, tablets, and different digital gadgets emit blue gentle. This may intervene with melatonin manufacturing, the hormone that regulates our sleep-wake cycle. Research have proven publicity to blue gentle earlier than mattress can delay sleep onset, scale back sleep high quality, and make it more durable to fall right into a deep, restorative sleep.
By protecting your gadgets out of the bed room, you may assist your physique wind down naturally, with out the interference of synthetic gentle. In case you’ve ever discovered your self scrolling mindlessly in your cellphone earlier than mattress after which having hassle falling asleep, you’ve skilled this firsthand. The answer? Maintain your telephones, tablets, and different gadgets in a devoted charging area outdoors the bed room. Just like the charging drawer I’ve created.
In case you aren’t keen to try this, there are issues we will do. Examples embody placing a purple gentle filter on the cellphone, sporting blue-light blocking glasses. It’s also possible to change to one thing just like the Daylight Computer (I like this for journaling and writing at night time).
Scale back Late-Night time Distractions
One other problem with having gadgets close to your mattress is the fixed temptation to examine them. Whether or not it’s an pressing work electronic mail, a textual content from a buddy, or the most recent information replace. This fixed connectivity can result in late-night distractions, leaving you feeling wired and anxious as an alternative of relaxed and prepared for relaxation.
With a charging drawer, you may create a wholesome boundary between your bed room and the surface world. By setting a agency rule that gadgets have to be charged within the kitchen or one other designated area, you’ll be much less more likely to examine them throughout the night time. This straightforward behavior can enhance your sleep high quality and show you how to be extra current with your loved ones throughout the day.
Improved Focus and Connection
When your gadgets are tucked away in a drawer, it’s simpler to deal with the current second. For households, this implies extra high quality time spent collectively with out the distractions of texting, gaming, or scrolling. By having a chosen space for charging gadgets, we encourage everybody to be extra intentional about when and the way they use expertise.
Now, let’s speak about how I created this charging drawer and why it’s been such a game-changer in our dwelling.
How I Created My DIY Charging Drawer
Making a charging drawer in my kitchen was a comparatively easy challenge, and it didn’t require lots of fancy instruments or expertise. I began with a drawer I already had in my kitchen, and with a number of small changes, turned it right into a purposeful and arranged area for charging gadgets. Right here’s how I did it!
Step 1: Discover the Proper Drawer
I had a drawer in my kitchen that was underused and a bit of disorganized, so I made a decision to repurpose it for this challenge. Ideally, the drawer must be in an area that’s simply accessible to the entire household however not in a high traffic space the place it may very well be a distraction. Our kitchen labored completely as a result of it’s near our household’s each day actions, nevertheless it’s not the place the place we go to unwind at night time.
You don’t want to purchase a brand new drawer—simply discover one which you have already got in your kitchen, workplace, or front room that’s not serving a lot of a objective. If the drawer is simply too small or shallow, you may need to contemplate swapping it for a deeper one that may accommodate a number of gadgets.
Step 2: Set up a Energy Strip Contained in the Drawer
That is the place the magic occurs! The important thing to creating a charging drawer work is including an influence strip or surge protector contained in the drawer. This lets you plug in all of your gadgets in a single place, protecting all the things organized and out of sight.
I selected an influence strip that match completely contained in the drawer, with sufficient retailers to cost a number of gadgets without delay. It’s vital to pick an influence strip that has an extended sufficient wire to succeed in your nearest outlet. You additionally need one with surge safety to make sure the security of your gadgets. Be certain that the facility strip is positioned in a method that enables airflow to stop overheating. To perform this, I re-wired a plug that was once exterior going through on the facet of a cupboard to be inside going through. This left the cupboard beneath largely open. It now shops rubbish luggage and huge containers for the kitchen.
It’s also possible to add charging cords which can be lengthy sufficient to comfortably attain from the facility strip to your gadgets. I like to recommend protecting quite a lot of cords for various gadgets—some for iPhones, some for Androids, and others for iPads or tablets.
I did discover energy strips particularly designed for this. However at nearly $300 every, I needed to attempt a DIY choice and am glad I did.
Step 3: Add a Silicone Mat to Shield the Drawer
As soon as the facility strip was put in, I added a silicone mat to the underside of the drawer. This protects the floor and prevents any gadgets from slipping round. Silicone mats are heat-resistant, non-slip, and straightforward to scrub, making them excellent for this type of challenge. Additionally they add a pleasant contact of group, protecting all the things in place and searching tidy.
Step 4: Manage the Cords and Gadgets
Now comes the enjoyable half: organizing the cords and gadgets. I made certain to maintain all the things neat and accessible. This concerned coiling the cords and utilizing small clips to maintain them from tangling. I additionally made certain to depart sufficient room for every system to relaxation comfortably whereas charging.
For our household, the charging drawer has grow to be the go-to spot for telephones, iPads, and some other gadgets that want a cost. Everybody is aware of the place to plug of their gadgets. There’s additionally no have to seek for chargers or battle over who will get to plug in first.
Our Household’s Charging Routine and Display Time Habits
Since we added the charging drawer to our kitchen, it’s actually helped us set up wholesome habits round our system use. Right here’s how we use it:
- Gadgets are charged in a single day within the kitchen: We’ve made it a rule that telephones, iPads, and different gadgets have to be charged within the drawer in a single day. This ensures nobody is tempted to examine their gadgets late at night time. And we get up with absolutely charged gadgets, prepared for the day forward.
- No screens after darkish: We attempt to keep away from utilizing screens after darkish, particularly within the hour or two main as much as bedtime. With the charging drawer, it’s a lot simpler to maintain gadgets out of attain and out of thoughts throughout this time. This behavior has helped enhance our sleep high quality, particularly for the youngsters.
- Household-wide tech detox: We’ve additionally made it a behavior to maintain screens off throughout household meals. This has made supper time a extra related expertise. We use this time to catch up, chat about our day, and deal with one another with out distractions.
Conclusion: The Advantages of a DIY Charging Drawer
Including a DIY charging drawer to our kitchen has been top-of-the-line issues we’ve finished for our household’s tech habits. It’s a easy answer that promotes more healthy sleep, reduces distractions, and encourages extra aware use of our gadgets. By protecting our telephones and tablets in a devoted area, we’ve created higher boundaries between expertise and leisure. It’s additionally improved our general well-being.
In case you’re on the lookout for a easy approach to make your property extra organized and tech-friendly, I extremely suggest organising a DIY charging drawer. It doesn’t take a lot time, and the advantages are completely value it!
Completely satisfied charging, and right here’s to more healthy tech habits for the entire household!
What are your loved ones’s guidelines and habits round gadgets? Go away a remark and tell us!
