Five Tips to Decorate a Bookshelf

If you follow us on Facebook, you have already read that our office bookshelf was featured on The Steven and Chris Show, a Canadian design/talk show.  To say I was thrilled is an understatement.  The downside?  The show doesn’t allow streaming outside of Canada, so I couldn’t watch it!  Recently, though, I received a dvd of the segment from a producer, so I’ve been able to bask in all the glory.  So, I guess I may be called an ‘expert’ on decorating bookshelves?  That’s pretty extreme, but here’s the photo that was shown, taken from this post.

Here’s the play-by-play on what was said about our bookshelves. 

Steven said, “This is well-organized.”  Chris (who is more minimalist) said, “To me, this is flawlessly done.”  Their guest, design expert Cobi Ladner, said, “That is beautiful because you’ve got your storage, you’ve got your books there, but it still looks great.  There’s a knack to that and there are certain rules that you can apply to make that happen.”

So, what are Cobi’s rules? 

1.  Heavy items should go on the bottom.  This isn’t limited to literal weight, but also to visual weight.  Boxes, baskets and large collections, such as our encyclopedias, should stay toward the bottom. 

2.  Add height to the top.  This makes a bookshelf feel more built-in, even if it’s not.  If you have a stand alone shelf, adding baskets to the top to fill the space between the shelf and ceiling will help the shelf appear built-in.

3.  Use books to create pedestals.  Don’t let decorative objects take up cupboard space, put them on display.  Stack larger books and top the stack with a decorative object, adding height and drawing attention to that object.

4.  Stand back and look for balance.  If you have one side that seems more filled or visually heavy, shift items around to make the shelf feel more balanced. 

5.  Negative space is usually what makes the beauty.  Don’t feel like you have to fill every space with books.  Adding the decorative objects with space on all sides will create a reprieve for the eyes.  Your shelf will also look less like a library or bookstore and more like a display with books mixed in.  If you have tons of books, don’t feel that you have to have every book you own on the same shelf.  Add a small stack to a coffee table, nightstand, or another bookshelf elsewhere in the house.  Create book pedestals there to display more decorative items, too.

Posted by ourhumbleabowed on January 10, 2011

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