SHOULD ROCKING CHAIRS MAKE A COMEBACK?

Laundry Chutes And 9 Other Ingenious Home Hacks That Are No Longer In Use

Image: Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

Many technological solutions of the past that have been replaced by newer inventions still linger in old houses. Some of them, you might even have seen in your grandparent’s home or somewhere else. A number of these old features, like the laundry chute, are quite handy even in this day and age. Take a look at the following ten items and see if you can recognize some of them.

Image: Quino Al

Until a couple of decades ago, landline telephones were an essential means of communication. Every place had one and it was a communal device for every person in that location. Telephones were big, sturdy, and quite elegant, actually. But they weren’t always so compact.

Because of their big, heavy stature, they required quite a bit of space. Homes used to have niches in walls for this purpose. These phones had cords, so people had to stand around to talk. Hence, phone niches often appeared in hallways, kitchens, and bedrooms.

Image: Marcos Assis

It might seem odd today but, up until around 1940, most families heated their homes by burning coal. Coal delivery men traveled door-to-door to provide people with the fuel to power their furnaces.

These men shoveled coal through a small door and down the chute into the basement. Once in the basement, homeowners could shovel the coal directly into the furnace. Today most of these chutes have been sealed, though you will often still see the iron doors on older homes.

Image: Grant Durr

Not to be confused with the famous Murphy bed, which folds into a closet or wall to save floor space when not in use, the Sorlien ceiling bed was stowed in the ceiling. This device was lowered from the ceiling via a crank, with hidden weights in the wall working to counterbalance the bed.

The obvious advantage of this bed was that it took up no closet or wall space, with floor space used only when in service. The ceiling bed only worked for houses with an attic above.

Image: Stefan Steinbauer

Even basic things like light switches evolve. There was a time when those humble but useful devices had not one but two buttons for each light. One to turn on the light, one to turn it off.

The button you pushed, stayed down. And, when you pushed a button, the one that was down, popped right up. Neat, right?

Image: Melanie Kreutz

It seems like a quite useful thing to have if your shoes are dirty and you need to scrape them off before entering a place, right? If you’ve ever walked up to someone’s front door and seen a strange ground-level cast-iron contraption, that is it: it’s a boot scraper.

In some homes, these tiny iron ornaments still stick out in front of the door. Many include ornate spirals and designs, including animals. Usually, two boot scrapers would border the door at the end of a walkway.

Image: Ray Shrewsberry

Root cellars were used to store vegetables, fruits, nuts, and other things for long periods. Some were simply an unfinished room in the basement while others were built into the ground a short distance from the house.

Modern refrigeration has rendered root cellars unnecessary for most people. But if you have one, you can certainly still put it to good use and store foods that maybe don’t need to be frozen but are best kept at a cooler temperature than that room.

Image: Nacho Fernández

If the idea of a dark space full of rusty razor blades right in your bathroom gives you the chills, you are not alone. But there was a time when that was a real thing. A couple of decades ago, medicine cabinets had a tiny slit to dispose of old razor blades. Where might those dirty razors go? Nowhere, really. They merely went into the wall.

If someone were to remove the medicine cabinet, they’d likely see all the discarded razors. Keep that in mind if you plan to have someone replace your old cabinet.

Image: Jason Murphy

Once upon a time, milk was delivered door to door in the early morning hours by milkmen dressed in white overalls. That is why having a milk door was standard in many homes. The small door was situated on the outside of the house and was used by the milkman to pick up empty bottles and leave fresh ones.

Milkmen usually delivered the drinks early in the morning so families could drink milk with breakfast. Sometimes, milkmen would deliver other products such as eggs, cheese, butter, and soft drinks.

Image: Kaylah Matthews

Imagine not having to drive a nail through your walls to hang a picture. It would be convenient, right? Well, until some decades ago, that was the norm. Enter picture hanging molding.

The whole contraption looked like, well, a molding design in the upper segment of the interior walls. Movable hooks were hung from such rails and, in turn, pictures were suspended from those hooks.

Image: engin akyurt

Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a little door on your bathroom wall where you could simply toss your laundry and have it fall right next to the washing machine? Well, there was a time when that was the case in many homes with more than one story.

Laundry chutes were designed to relieve the burden of carrying laundry. They're so handy that many people still install them today. No one knows who invented the first laundry chute, or when. Newspaper articles describing early linen chutes date back to the 1890s.

Great TV shows that came from even greater books

Millions of us have watched these shows, but few know the powerful books behind them. Not only that, but many of the original stories actually differ from what we’ve watched on screen. Discover what you didn’t know about your favorite shows and what they’re really all about.

Do you enjoy escaping from your everyday life through epic adventures with mythical creatures? Then you might’ve watched the extremely successful epic fantasy drama, "Game of Thrones", which aired on HBO and is currently available on streaming.

It’s a visual masterpiece based on George R.R. Martin’s novels titled "A Song of Ice and Fire." These books feature complex political maneuvering among families fighting for the Iron Throne, endless supernatural elements such as the mysterious threat from the frozen North, and morally gray characters who are endearing yet disappointing. Some differences from the original story include new characters and, sometimes, entire plotlines being cut out.

Are you one of those people who likes to reflect on how far human cruelty can go? Then maybe you know about "The Handmaid’s Tale", which aired on Hulu. It's an expanded version of the novel of the same name, written by the well-known Canadian author Margaret Atwood.

The original text was published in 1985 and is considered a groundbreaking speculative and dystopian drama. Hulu’s production then became an award-winning adaptation that builds heavily on the book's initial foundation of terror, subjugation, and resilience experienced by the main character, June (Offred), in the theocratic Republic of Gilead, although less centered on June’s famous internal monologues and more on other aspects like the "Colonies" and the Commanders' secret lives.

For those who love spending time with family and friends, this is an all-time favorite. The NBC series "Little House on the Prairie", developed by Michael Landon, is a legendary adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s semi-autobiographical novels (the first of the same name and the follow-up book titled "On the Banks of Plum Creek").

It’s important to note that the original books presented an authentic, grounded look at 19th-century pioneer survival, including more grueling realities and extreme danger, and the TV show leans into a broader family drama, balancing day-to-day country hardship with deeply emotional and heartwarming storytelling focused on romance and community.

Romantic stories tend to be a big favorite. For all those who love love and are open to a bit of fantasy too, "Outlander", which aired on the Starz network, is a fantastic choice. The show is a condensed adaptation of the best-selling novels by author Diana Gabaldon.

These books are an epic romantic fantasy about time-travel, romance, and war. They center around a nurse named Claire in 1945 who visits Scotland. She then touches a magical stone, and suddenly finds herself in the 18th century. As the story develops, referencing real historical events, she shares a deep love with a Scottish warrior named Jamie, and they fight to stay together across time and space.

Have you ever longed to follow clues and solve mysteries? Then you probably love all things Sherlock. The BBC show adaptation of the same name has been a brilliant reimagining of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic 19th-century books for modern times, swapping notepads for cell phones.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s original texts include four novels and 56 short stories written between 1887 and 1922, creating the modern mystery genre and establishing the famous Mr. Holmes as the ultimate master of deduction; that is, the art of reaching big conclusions from small clues. The stories are famous for the detailed clues that invite the reader to play the detective game alongside Holmes and his close friend, Dr. John Watson.

Money troubles and social class are other issues that affect all of us, and the 1995 "Pride and Prejudice" miniseries is a brilliant adaptation of the timeless novel of the same name, written by Jane Austen in 1813.

The show is considered a gold standard of TV adaptations, made up of six episodes that perfectly capture the romance and social rules of the book, which follows the witty and intelligent Elizabeth Bennet as she falls in love with the wealthy and proud Mr. Darcy. The novel is especially famous for showing why people often let their egos get in the way (pride) and judge others too quickly (prejudice).

And for the endless romantics, here we have another option: the Netflix adaptation of "Bridgerton", based on a collection of eight novels written by Julia Quinn, each story focusing on a Bridgerton sibling's search for true love.

While the books are considered entertaining, many fans argue that the TV show offers a richer version of the original stories, maintaining their essence while expanding the narrative into a more exciting on-screen experience, including deeper characters, heightened drama, visual magic, and powerful soundtracks.

Beyond usual crowd favorites, viewers often want to watch something a bit more twisted and are intrigued by exploring what’s behind a murderous mind. For those situations, Showtime’s "Dexter" is perfect.

The show is based on the book "Darkly Dreaming Dexter" by Jeff Lindsay. It follows Dexter Morgan, who by day works for the police and solves murders, and by night, he is a vigilante serial killer who hunts other murderers. The first season closely follows the novel, but as the show continues, it begins to differ, presenting deeper character arcs and alternate explanations, such as Dexter’s desire to kill being the result of psychological trauma (instead of the mysterious dark ‘power’ described in the text).

To broaden the scope, let’s look at shows that also cover historical situations and, in this case, a story concerning the game of chess. We are talking about Netflix’s show "The Queen’s Gambit", which is a very faithful and stunning adaptation of Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel of the same name.

Both tell the gripping story of Beth Harmon, an orphan and chess genius who rises to become a chess master, while she battles addiction to drugs and alcohol, the pressures of fame, and sexism in the male-dominated world of chess.

Last but not least, to round out the list with a fantastic show that centers on politics, Netflix’s 2013 "House of Cards", based on the 1989 novel by British author Michael Dobbs, starring Kevin Spacey and Robyn Wright, was extremely popular.

The original story follows a British politician named Francis Urquhart and his thirst for power. In contrast, the TV show focuses on Frank and Claire Underwood, a ruthless and power-hungry couple living in Washington, D.C. After Frank is denied a cabinet appointment, he begins a quest, at any cost, to climb the ladder to the presidency.