Neatly wrap cords without ties or tangles

The goal: a way to wrap up cords (headphones, power, etc.) without ties or Velcro straps that's fast, doesn't come undone, and is quick to undo. Here's one method, any better suggestions?

More guides: http://www.curiousinventor.com/guides

Video showing a slow iPod headphone wrap and unwrap:


Video of power cord wrap:

Step 1: Make figure 8 loops...

Leave about 2 figure 8 loops of wire left to wrap around the middle.

Comments

[doo da do]

Easy use a tie that comes on a loaf of bread.

[bo5]

Why don't I just make my self something to wrap the earphones around?

[aryaravikant]

i preferred not to coil wrap to any thing wiich contain long wires becoz after too many wraps it may leads to broken wires from inside.......

[RichardBronosky]

The demonstration form the Sprint Wait Less campaign was the final word on the matter as far as I'm concerned. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJ8RcW_X10s

[SurferGeek]

Doesn't everyone wrap their cords this way? I've been doing it this way my whole life...

[Raycing]

Yep so have I, I thought this sort of thing would be common knowledge.

[your dog]

me too (or three)

[Bartboy]

Me also.

[red-king]

 same here.

[dmac208]

well sadly is not.

[chucka]

One way to improve upon this is to wrap the cord in a figure eight style. Then, fold it in half. and then finish by tying it off in the same fashion. The figure eight cancels each twist in the cord with the reverse loop. Thus, when you unravel it you have a perfectly straight cord.

[gregeb]

there is a commercial fig8 organizer at fig8.talusfurniture.com Best for small cords like earphones.

[randyhow]

Isn't it easier to tie with rubber band or short wire ?

[kekoa79]

http://www.finehomebuilding.com/how-to/video/3-ways-to-wrap-extension-cords-and-air-hoses.aspx
These suggestions are great for longer cables/cords.  Such as long power cords or microphone cables.  You never want to just wrap them around your forearm as over time this will damage the wiring.

[siedpe13]

wow, thats how i do it myself, ever since a few years ago i was just messing around and figured out that very same way. but now i dont use ear buds, just regular headphones.

[weolson]

With cords and ropes, when they are long enough, while making the loops, while I still have enough length left, I take the long end and lay it back where it came from, then  wrap that new loop end around the middle and tuck the new looped end through the end loop, which leaves a loop which yu can hang it by.

[MattandJora]

 i like it =]
just today i had to untangle all of my pens and pencils from my headphones with this it will never happen again! huzzah!!

[Bartboy]

Liking the old school headphones!

[pdub77]

Those are 'old school?'  Five years does not count.  ; )

[valamas]

thank you. I will train myself to do this. I have cords everywhere and as some of the posters suggest, NO, i never knew/use this method. So thank you for showing a life skill.

[Cracknel]

Any idea on how to wrap this type of Nokia headset?

[jamuraa]

I have this type of cord actually. What I do is start from the other end - the plug end, and be careful to start in the "middle" of the figure 8 so that it will be tied down at the end - and then do the figure 8's. When I get to the headphone end, I put the short headphone in the middle of the figure 8, and then use the remaining one wire to wrap around the whole bundle and through the loop. It works nicely - the extra wire that the long earphone has is just about the right length.

[arashiodori]

You could 'fold' the longest headbud to the length of the second, hold it in place, and then repeat the instructable, adjusting figure 8 length to adapt for the microphone/remote. Or if suitable, you can just use the longest headbud wire to do the instructable.

[Tommyhzy]

1. Remove the box thing and solder the wires together 2: Cut off a piece of wire from the longer earbud and solder so you have equal size lengths. 3. Kick a piece of hard furniture. 4. Wrap the cord as you would a normal set of corded earbuds...

[spork969]

The "box thing" is the mic, (s)he can't just remove it. It's a headset. Cracknel, I would attempt to follow this instructable, it might work, especially if you fold the longer one down to the mic.

[haclil]

I think I have a better way for wrapping thin cords: You say in step 1 to "Make figure 8 loops" but, in the top video, you make simple loops.

To make true figure-8s you must wind the wire *between* your 2nd and 3rd digits, bring it down behind digits 4 & 5, up and between 2 & 3, behind 2 & 3, over the top, and repeat the process til you've wrapped as much as you want.

There's a big advantage to this way: When you unfurl the wire, it will be much less tangle than when using your way. This is because figure-8s introduce fewer twists. Try it!

[mtm101097]

i'd got this idea from airplane headphones and have been doing this for awhile. never thought of making an ible' on it though.nice

[omnibot]

http://www.pnas.org/content/104/42/16432.short

[LuminousObject]

This is the same way I always wrap lines on a boat for storage, but I never thought of doing this to earbuds. Good idea.

[Father Christmas]

i thought this was just common sense. 90% of cords, when bought, are like this(or somewhat), so it is only natural to mimic it for simplicity.

[brc3001]

power cordEven though this is not a power cord my suggestion on coiling the head set is a figure eight.

[PetervG]

I never understood Apple earphones. They're so big! I put them in my ear and it hurt and fall out. Crazy . .

[Whaleman]

Me too! I use Sony brand earphones with a thing that wraps around my ear so they don't fall out.

[kittyno]

I had the same problem, then I found the Jensen earbuds that actually go in your ear. They come in a few different colors, but more importantly, they come with more than one size earbud that you can interchange to fit your ear. You can buy these at meijer for about fifteen dollars. note: the case that they come in kinda sucks, but that's not a problem anymore, since I just learned the above method :-)

[Jack Attack]

my only complaint with apple earbuds is that the sound quality is pretty bad. Koss makes some good squishy sort of memory foam earbuds that fit into anyones ear and will stay in well and have good sound quality for only $18 (i've seen earbuds for $400). yea, i know, i sound like an ad.

[PetervG]

Oh yea, your avatar is creepy.

[DannyHunt]

Wow! This is the way I've ALWAYS done it. I feel so smart. Lol I used to repair VCRs back in the day and this is how I would wrap the cord when I didn't have any twist tie thingies. So I wrap most all cord-type stuff this way now. Works great

[old_bass_masta]

wow, i feel just as smart as you, and im 14 :P

[CuriousInventor.com]

Also, several useful comments at http://www.lifehacker.com/software/ipod/how-to-wrap-a-headphone-cord-225310.php
A couple people pointed out that the tight loops will likely wear out the wire faster.

"...Whenever I'm not wrapping the cord in question around the device it's plugged into, I prefer a non-coiling method: fold the cable in half a number of times (depending on the length and diameter of the cable). This should ensure that the ends of the cable are all at one end. Next, tie the whole folded cable into a single straight/granny knot. This method avoids any tight coils, avoids introducing any twists, allows you to fold the cable along its natural curve, avoids tangling, and is easy to unwrap (just undo the single large knot, and the rest falls loosely apart without any coils to worry about).... --scottleibrand "

[CuriousInventor.com]

Here's another way: http://www.lifehacker.com/software/life-hacks/keep-headphone-wires-from-getting-tangled-152499.php