A bookcase is more than just a place to store your books. It can be a statement piece in your home, displaying your personality, interests, and style. But styling a bookcase can be daunting - how do you arrange your books and other decorative items to create a cohesive and visually appealing display? In this post, we'll explore some tips and tricks for styling your bookcase.
Arrange by Alphabetical Order or Size
One of the simplest ways to organize your bookcase is by arranging your books in alphabetical order according to the author's surname. This method works best for those with large book collections, particularly if you need to find a specific book quickly. Fiction volumes tend to be roughly the same size, making alphabetical order the easiest style to work with. But, you can also arrange your books by size, assuming that not all your books are the same size. An arrangement according to the size of the books is probably the most restful on the eye, from small to large or vice versa.
Highest or Lowest Point in the Middle
An alternative to arranging the books from high to low (or low to high) is to have the high point or the low point in the middle of the shelf. This introduces a different shape and allows you to create some variation from shelf to shelf.
Use Books as Bookends
Use of bookends, image from Books By The Foot
If you don't have enough books to fill the whole shelf, a good and useful idea is to lay some of the books on their sides, spines facing the wall, and use them as bookends to support the others.
Rainbow Arrangement
Rainbow Arrangement, image from Books by the foot
A phenomenon of color-sorted bookshelves spread like wildfire on social media a few years ago. The basic idea is to arrange the spines of the books by color, with the aim of making the shelf resemble a rainbow. This can be an excellent alternative way of styling your bookcase, irrespective of whether you have the whole spectrum of colors available in your home library or you have to be content with a more neutral range.
Wrapping Paper
Kraft Wrapped books, image from Books by the Foot
Another method used by commercial stylists and real estate agents to anonymize or "calm" a bookcase in advertising photos is to cover all the books in the same wrapping paper. You can do the same. Vary the color of the covers according to your own taste and write the titles on the spines of the books in your best handwriting.
Complement with Decorative Items
Stacks of newspapers, magazine files, boxes and cartons for small items, tins, vacation memories such as shells, pebbles, and souvenirs, sculptures, vases in a variety of materials, new candles or old candle stumps in a glass jar, display cases and glass domes, framed photographs, houseplants, and plants that trail down from the shelf are just a few examples of decorative items that can complement your books and add character to your bookcase.
Think About Visual Weight
Place the heaviest books and objects on the lower shelves to create a sense of balance. Think about visual weight and ensure that the bookcase is not top-heavy, as it can create an unsteady look.
In conclusion, a well-styled bookcase is a thing of beauty. By following these tips and tricks, you can create a stunning display that showcases your personality and interests while keeping your books organized and accessible.