Pro-tip #1 - Stick’em up!
May 23, 2008 – 10:52 pmIf you’ve seen the pictures of my room here in Japan, you know that my room is tiny. Back in the states, I was very used to my luxuriously large desk where I could sprawl all the everyday items I would need. My new slimline desk, more of a computer cart really, just doesn’t have this kind of space to give. Desperate times call for crafty solutions.
Items Required:
- Slim Desk - ¥4,000
- Heavy-duty Double-sided Tape(from a hardware store) - ¥250
- Scissors(from 百円ショープ) - ¥105
- Computer junk(external hard drives, USB hubs, wireless receivers)
Instructions:
Velcro would work too, but that was way more expensive at the hardware store than double-sided tape. As a student, you have to be mindful of your budget, and so double stick tape will probably do the best job for the least amount of money.
Cut yourself off a few strips of the double-sided tape using the 百円ショープ scissors. Be liberal about it. This stuff sticks well, but not that well. It can gum up, and start to kind of ooze a little bit. Use more than you need. The tape is cheap. You can always get more.
Stick the tape to the appropriate side of whichever item you’d like to mount. Take that item, and stick it to the underside of your desk. Pictured above, I have mounted my USB hub to the underside of the top portion of my desk. This gets the clutter of the hub off the desk surface, and creates a less rats-nest-like routing path for all the cables.
I have also mounted my external hard drive in this manner on the opposite side. The trick for heavier items like that is to stick them not only to the underside of the desk, but also to an overhanging edge. My hard drive is mounted to the underside of the top piece of my desk, and also braced against the metal support that holds that piece up. It hasn’t fallen yet.
Because of this method, I have been able to clutter my desk up just the way I was used to doing back home. I have more room to spread all my bills, pens, change, paperwork, and other junk. However, I also have more room for my mouse or for doing my homework.
