Number five is alive! (Anyone remember Short Circuit?) I’m using that line because we recently added a small, helpful gadget to our home that feels a little like a friendly robot. You know I love clever upgrades—one of my favorite posts ever was about our “Super Toilet”—so this tiny convenience was right up my alley.
Let me start at the beginning. We’re big believers in having lights within easy reach of the bed. It sounds obvious, but for a while our first master bedroom only had an overhead light controlled by the switch at the door. That switch feels like miles away when you’re lying in bed half-asleep, and until we installed wall sconces a couple of years into living there, we had nightly negotiations about who would get up to flip the switch. Picture both of us pretending to sleep to avoid the trek across the room.
When we rearranged our bedroom last September, we almost ignored our own advice about reachable lights. My bedside lamp ended up set back in a nook, which meant a serious stretch to reach the switch each night. People asked if it bothered me and I honestly said no at first. What’s a little pre-bed stretching, right? It was still better than getting out of bed and walking across the room.
But over time, that pre-bed stretching wore on me. What began as a week or two of reaching felt mildly annoying after a month or two, and after several months it turned into a nightly frustration. There are certainly worse problems to have, but I’m always up for simple upgrades that improve a room’s function—especially when they prevent a nightly ritual of awkward light-limbo before bed.
Since the layout of the room otherwise worked perfectly, the solution I had in mind was a remote for the lamp. A bunch of readers had actually suggested one when we first changed the room, so I began hunting for the right option. At first I fancied a Jetsons-style system controllable from my phone—phones are usually the last things to leave our hands at night. I also briefly remembered The Clapper from childhood. But many of the smart-plug systems I found felt like overkill for this simple need.
Eventually I found an affordable remote outlet kit on sale and ordered it. About a week after it arrived, I was excited to set it up. That’s when I discovered a design flaw: the remote-controlled outlet unit was so large that it blocked the other socket on the wall plate, whichever way I plugged it in. Not ideal.
Because the outlet behind our dresser needs to power several devices, I was annoyed at first, but the oversized plug turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It forced me to dig an old power strip out of storage so I could plug the remote unit into the strip instead of directly into the wall. That solved the blockage issue and, bonus, let me plug multiple devices in at once. We had previously been rotating which items were plugged in, but now the dresser became a real hub: fan, baby monitor, and other essentials all have permanent power.
The best part, of course, is the magical moment when the lamp disappears at the touch of the remote. No more strained arm muscles or midnight negotiations—just press, click, lights out. To keep things tidy and convenient, I attached the remote to the side of our bed frame with a bit of 3M velcro so it stays hidden under the bedspread when the bed is made and is within easy reach when we need it.
I also used one of the additional remote outlets in the kit for Sherry’s lamp so she doesn’t have to reach either. Her lamp wasn’t as far back in a nook as mine, but installing the remote was a small gesture—plus it ends the nightly debate about who has to get up. Now I can be all “You must be tired, honey—let me get that light for you. You just rest.”
Small techno fixes like this make everyday life a little easier, and they don’t have to be expensive or complicated to be satisfying. Are there any quick upgrades you’ve added around your house that make routines simpler? I’ve definitely got The Clapper song stuck in my head—clap on, clap off—but I’ll stick with the remote for now.
Psst—Today Sherry is sharing a bit about life behind the blog over on Style Me Pretty Living, talking about what it’s like to run a home-centered design blog and the small choices that make a big difference.