Most headphone wire management products are based on a concept of wrapping, a gesture ingrained into our wire filled lives. The problem with something that’s been wrapped though, is that it tends to have to be unwrapped before it can be used again. Podcap is a way to organize your headphone wires while keeping them readily accessible.

Step 1: Materials

1 chapstick/lip balm (preferably one that’s running low or empty)
1 pair of earphones

* the headphones used in this instructable are the most recent generation of Apple earphones

Step 2: Find Your Wrap

Podcap works best when both ends of your earphones are positioned opposite the portion that goes in the cap. Depending on the length of your earphones you will need to find the right way to gauge your wrap. This can be done rather simply through trial and error by adjusting the spacing between your pointer, middle, and ring fingers. It may take a few tries to find it, but in the future your fingers will do the remembering for you.

Step 3: Cap It

Once you’ve got your wrap, hold it tight at the closed end and slide your cap overtop, adding about a quarter turn to ensure a tight grip. The remaining bit of your chapstick/lip balm packaging is #5 polypropylene recyclable :).

Step 4: Live With Less Unwrapping!

You might be a little skeptical that your headphones will stay snug with such a small portion being held inside the cap. Well, I was too at first. So I gave it the shake test, then a violent shake test...and then a solid 8 hours in my pocket at work test. The waxy polypropylene plastic on the cap held onto my iPod touch earphones like a charm; the rubbery coating on the wire works well to its advantage. I cannot promise that all earphones will work. But given the amount effort and materials needed, don’t you want to try? Enjoy!