This Basic Amazon Buy Turns Any Table Lamp Into a Portable Table Lamp — And For Just $20

Tired of tangled messy cords? Sick of searching for a power outlet? Then this is the purchase for you (and you're going to want more than one).

rechargeable lightbulb on a colorful background
(Image credit: Amazon)

My friend Megan is excellent at what we like to call 'cord management.' Nothing bothers her more than errant cables, so she therefore became quite the expert at disguising them. Her chargers fall in line; you'd think her TV is cordless the way the power strip is nowhere to be found. 'It's an eyesore,' she says of the pesky wires— and she's right.

Thanks to Megan's influence, I too am done with exposed cords. A tangle on the floor looks messy; a line down the wall looks lazy. I know it's harsh, but I can't get her voice out of my head! I hear it as I shop at the best home decor brands — the product may be chic, but can I disguise the wire, or better yet, find a cordless option?

Thanks to this aversion by association, I was quite taken (though admittedly baffled at first) upon seeing a hack from content creator Charlie Suzanne Wenz Scott.

A post shared by Charlie Suzanne Wenz Scott

A photo posted by truthfullycharlie on

In the video posted to Instagram, Charlie is seen cutting the cord off a mini table lamp then screwing in a new lightbulb before calling it quits. Listen, I'm all for getting rid of cords but even I was confused — she cut off the cord? How will this lamp work now?

The answer: a rechargeable lightbulb, controlled via remote. That's right, this clever product turns basically any lamp into a portable one; you just have to ensure the bulb is charged (and be brave enough to cut the cord). It also boasts 3 warmth options — cool white, daylight, and warm white — plus nine RGB nightlight options. Us cord-hating shoppers could do a lot worse for just $20. I need one for every room ...

9 cordless, rechargeable lamps

Although this hack turns any lamp into a portable table lamp, sometimes it's nice to just have the hard work done for you. In that case, I found a few cordless, rechargeable lanterns for you to shop instead, all of them at different price points and styles for ultimate variety.

Brigid Kennedy
Style Editor

Brigid Kennedy is a Style Editor at Livingetc.com, where she scours the internet for the best and most stylish deals on home decor and more. After earning a degree from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, she spent the first 2.5 years of her journalism career covering U.S. politics and culture at TheWeek.com. She describes her design style as colorful and clean, and in her free time enjoys reading, watching movies, and curating impossibly niche playlists on Spotify. She recently relocated from Manhattan to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she's decorating and DIYing a new home downtown.