Every home has a few eyesores — and most of us just learn how to live with them.

It can be an awkwardly placed light switch, outlet, breaker box… a bunch of mangle cables behind your desk… an old refrigerator in a new kitchen… an AC unit ruining the Instagram pic you took of the garden…

And with our fast moving lives, we just brush it off. “Whatever.”

But no matter how many times you pass by them, they always get your attention, and in the back of your head, you think…

“If only there was some way to hide that…”

That’s exactly what we’re getting at:

There are many ways!

Take a look at this list of ideas and next time you look at an eyesore in your home, you can be certain there are ways to either fix them or conceal them. You can’t get rid of an ugly breaker box in the middle of the corridor, but you can easily conceal it. With elegance, I might add.

Out of sight, out of mind, right?

1. Cover a breaker box

Cover a breaker box with a painting!
Cover a breaker box with a painting! Source: Houselogic

Breaker boxes are often ugly. It’s the kind of thing that is usually function over form, because we all know it’s important, but who really cares what it looks like?

Well, now you don’t have to.

You can conceal whatever breaker box you have with a nice frame for either a painting or a photograph. It’s easy to remove whenever you need the breaker box, and it will otherwise stay hidden for good.

Also check out ways to cover power outlets — very useful for those awkwardly placed ones that were already there when you moved in.

2. Conceal a thermostat or alarm

Use hinges to create a practical cover!
Use hinges to create a practical cover! Source: Buzzfeed

Thermostats and alarms can be even more awkwardly placed than breaker boxes, becoming a mild eyesore in living rooms and corridors… But since these are two things you might use frequently, it wouldn’t make sense to cover them in a cumbersome way.

To get around that, you can use a painting just like before, but this time installing hinges — making it fixed, but easy and practical to open whenever you need!

This also works for covering old landlines!

3. Hide an ugly internet router

Internet routers often don't agree with your decor.
Internet routers often don't agree with your decor. Source: Apartment Therapy

Internet routers don’t really come “vintage style” (we need to wait at least ten more years to call the old ones “vintage”), so their modern design with bleeping lights and antennas — albeit necessary — might not agree with you decor.

Here's an easy way around this:

Concealing it inside a book cover. It’s as simple as it sounds — just cover it, leaving the antenna out, and it’s done!

They really should make prettier routers by now, shouldn’t they?

There are also ways you can conceal it inside a box, but that’s not very recommended — albeit rare, routers are still electronics, so they can overheat.

4. Easily hide cables behind desk

No one likes the sight of tangled cables.
No one likes the sight of tangled cables. Source: refinery29

Unless you own cutting-edge Apple products (which are a bit pricey for most people), cables tangling together behind the desk is something you can easily relate to. We’ve all been there.

Luckily, there are millions of ways to hide ugly cables from behind your desk, but want to know a really easy way?

Simply drop a sheet of cloth from behind your desk.

It not only covers whatever mangle of cables (and outlets) you have there, but it also creates a nice visual contrast, since you can choose any color you like to match your room.

5. Spray paint over ugly chairs

Spray paint over old chairs for a new look!
Spray paint over old chairs for a new look! Source: The Moon and Me

Have a bunch of chairs you wish were a bit more colourful?

Or - let’s not sugar coat it - have a bunch of chairs you like to use but they look incredibly ugly or old?

There’s an easy way out:

Spray paint over them!

It takes pretty much no technique or skill, just pick your colour and paint over it until it’s done. Let it dry, and enjoy your new beautiful chair!

6. Upgrade an old fridge with removable wallpaper

Removable wallpaper can save an old fridge!
Removable wallpaper can save an old fridge! Source: One Sonic Bite

Refrigerators are expected to last for a long time — some are still kicking after twenty years.

Naturally, a lot can change in twenty years: your sense of design, your home, the colour of the walls… or maybe you just get bored of it.

Want to spice things up?

One quick and harmless way to upgrade an old fridge is by using removable wallpaper. It’s non-permanent, and if your fridge already has a few scratches and bruises, you can only improve on it!

7. Create regions with washi tape

Washi tape can create regions in your home.
Washi tape can create regions in your home. Source: Yes Missy

While the place you see above is far from an eyesore, it would be weird to see living room furniture in the corner just kind of… there. Floating in the middle of an expansive white room.

The solution is creating a region.

Interior designers do this all the time, and there are many ways to go about it — you can even use other furniture to create regions. But for this example, we’re using washi tape.

We never get tired of washi tape.

With a colour or pattern of your choosing, you can “draw” a region around your furniture. It makes the furniture belong there, rather than feeling loose in the room.

8. Hide water pipes with fake rocks

Fake rocks are great for decor and hiding eyesores.
Fake rocks are great for decor and hiding eyesores. Source: Plow&Hearth

Yep, those rocks in the image are not real — they are actually hollow and so light you can carry them yourself.

Of course they can be used simply for decoration, but if you have any eyesores in your yard or garden (like water pipes sticking out), you can use one of these to easily cover them!

9. Conceal an AC unit outdoors

A DIY way to conceal an AC unit.
A DIY way to conceal an AC unit. Source: Ugly Duckling House

AC units can ruin the flow of your carefully crafted garden, so there are some ways you can conceal them.

The best one?

Use this DIY handmade boxy protection — it agrees with the rustic look of an outdoor yard, and it hides the bulky and metallic AC unit from sight.

10. Conceal a litter box
 

There are many ways to conceal litter boxes!
There are many ways to conceal litter boxes! Source: homeyou.com

The idea shown above is just one of the many ways you can conceal a litter box. The fact it’s practical and neat only adds to the charm!

It looks like it’s just another piece of furniture, but it conceals the litter box AND the cleaning supplies you’ll need when cleaning it — making it a mess-free experience with extra points for convenience.

Plus, it’s made from IKEA furniture that you can DIY!

Are there any other eyesores you’d like to conceal, but don’t know how? Feel free to ask us for ideas in the comments below!

Also, if you’re looking for professional help to conceal your home’s eyesores, don’t hesitate to call us and get a free estimate from a professional interior designer!


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Keep on reading:

5 Genius Ways to Conceal a Cat Litter Box
How to Conceal Power Outlets and Cords
The Best Low-Maintenance Ground Covers
Get The Look For Less - Classic Dining Room

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