Learning how to style a bookcase, so it becomes an elegant part of a room rather than a distraction, is vital to a successful scheme. So whether you are a book hoarder, are obsessed with stunning coffee table books or love a paperback novel, you can find out how to artfully display them from our experts below.
You may be searching for bookshelf ideas to elevate your collection of tomes simultaneously – the material, layout, and shape of these can be integral to your display. And don’t forget your favourite keepsakes – style a bookshelf, so it holds memories.
Leave Space For Display Alongside Books
Remember that over-styling bookcases can be an issue if you design a home library. Books are usually special – not props, so don’t worry too much about having a few books too many that need to be piled sideways. However, if you do this, ensure that some areas of the bookshelves are kept book-free and devoted to displaying a few key pieces that reflect the style of your space,’ says Homes & Gardens’ decorating editor Emma Thomas.
Work Niches Into Your Bookshelf Design
If you are designing bookshelves from scratch, it’s worth structuring their layout with how you will style the bookcase in mind. It works particularly well in a space where the bookshelf is the most interesting element and perhaps even the focal point, such as at the end of a hallway. Still, it is also one of those characterful home office ideas worth including in your home study. Here, the bookcase has larger, longer niches in which the owner can display artworks, set off by a contrasting metallic background colour.
Display Books Stacked In Piles
You can style a bookshelf by grouping your coffee table books in piles – odd numbers always work best visually,’ says Homes & Gardens’ digital editor Jennifer Ebert. ‘If you do this, do leave some space around each pile so that they look deliberate and neat rather than accidental and messy. Then, depending on the subject matter or similar team colours, you could theme them, but try to keep to one pile of books and no more than two ornaments per shelf to retain a spacious and styled look.
Display Books By ‘weight’
To create a balanced look when styling a bookcase, it is always best to put the biggest tomes lower down and the smaller reads on the top,’ says Lucy Searle, Homes & Gardens’ Editor in Chief. ‘And look for organically shaped vases to contrast against the vertical lines of the bookshelf.
Apply Colour Scheme Rules To Bookshelves, Too
Living room bookshelf ideas don’t need to be the focal point of your space. Instead, they can act as a neutral background to the rest of your scheme. If you’re a collector of classics, they won’t have brightly coloured spines anyway, and you can remove those with colourful jackets to reveal a neutral spine underneath more often than not.
Display Your Vinyl On Bookshelves, Too
Vinyl records also look great on bookshelves, and popping in some singles amongst the albums varies the heights perfectly. So if you have a key colour in your scheme like the tangerine pieces shown here, add a few pieces in the same colour to tie in – a tangerine pot or vase or show off your Penguin classics that mostly have similar coloured spines.
Style A Bookcase With ‘less Is More In Mind
A common bookshelf styling mistake is to jam all of your books and ornaments together – as many can fit on each shelf. The adage ‘less is more key here, and if you have a beautiful colour painted behind your bookcase, you want to see it.
Showcase Accessories Alongside Books
We asked Ben Stokes, founder and interior designer at KAGU Interiors, why styling bookcases with more than just books is key to a happy scheme:
The styling possibilities are endless; they can offer much more than just a place to store your books. Shelves are the perfect platform to showcase favourite decorative items, and styling them can be an art in itself.
Create balance by introducing trailing house plants, placing them up high while adding smaller succulents lower down. Finish the look with a set of statement bookends, displaying a curated collection of books. Don’t forget – using a freestanding piece to divide an open plan area works well; it helps to zone the space while still making the room feel connected.
Display Books Imaginatively
Variety is the spice of life, yes? You don’t need to store your books horizontally – in fact, a mixture of the two makes for a much more interesting and stylish bookshelf. And we don’t mean tightly bunched together either – a couple of books gently leaning in on each other adds a more relaxed feel than a cool look, and it varies the heights. Horizontal books can have an ornament – a scented candle or a bud vase.
Showcase Your Bookshelf Styling With Colour
You can use your colour scheme to create interest and draw attention to your bookcase styling. For example, display colourful books against a dark background colour to stand out,’ says Homes & Gardens’ deputy editor Jo Bailey.
How Do You Make A Bookshelf Look Nice?
You can use several techniques to make a bookshelf look nice: first, declutter the bookcase to avoid being over-stuffed. Next, arrange the bookcase so that the largest, heaviest books are at the bottom; the smaller books are at the top. Next, stack books on their sides, some on their ends, leaving space around them to create a neat display. Leave room for accessories to be displayed alongside your books, too.
Finally, display books by the colours of the spines, and paint the back of the bookcase a darker colour, too, so that your bookcase styling is highlighted. These techniques are particularly important for living room and bedroom bookshelf ideas. Both will create a chaotic feel if disordered but restore interest, character and texture if well-ordered.
How Do You Stage A Bookcase Like A Pro?
The pros tend to empty it then create groups of items that they want to go on the shelves by size or purpose. Larger items – whether books, storage baskets or even pieces of art will go on the lower shelves, with visually lighter and smaller items being placed higher up. It is worth alternating the displays so that accessories sit above and below a row of books, rather than having books above books and accessories above accessories. It will create pace in your bookcase staging.
Start With Larger Items First.
It’s easy to come undone when you begin styling your shelf with small decorative items. So start to fill your shelf with larger items such as woven baskets or artwork. It will help you get the scale and balance right and give you a basic layout.
Bring In Artwork
I mentioned starting with artwork, which doesn’t have to be expensive. I love this large A1 timber frame I got from Adairs, making inexpensive posters look like framed pieces of art. And the best bit, you can easily change the posters or prints as your mood or seasons change.
Consider placing artwork towards the back of the shelf and layer smaller decorative items in front — using the depth of the shelf will create interest.
Mix Up Book Placement
Books instantly add a homely feel to shelf styling. So please make the most of them by stacking books horizontally and vertically and aligning some stacks to the left, right or centre of a shelf.
By mixing up the positioning of books and piles, you’ll keep things interesting and help balance the ‘weight’ of your shelf styling.
Introduce Decorative Objects
What can take your shelf styling up a notch is the introduction of decorative objects. These could be pieces you’ve collected on your travels, treasured family heirlooms or the latest season homewares.
Depending on your style, you could use almost anything as decorative accents. People who embrace the eclectic style will often use an old typewriter, whereas Scandi-lovers will lean towards concrete décor.
I’ve used a large brass stalk and hourglass from Freedom, a blue glass knot from Adairs and several other items as accent pieces on this shelf.
Don’t be afraid to play around with items. Sometimes, the pieces you don’t think will look great when you step back and look at the shelf as a whole.
Put An Item On Your Stack.
One of my favourite ways to give your shelf styling confidence is by layering, and an easy trick is by placing items on top of stacks.
If you’ve created a few book stacks on your shelf, place a small decorative item on top. For example, I’ve placed the blue glass knot on one stack and a brass trinket box on another.
You can use this tip in any space of the home. For example, you may place a soap and body brush on a stack of towels in the bathroom. It’s a neat trick you can apply to any styling you do.
Decorate In Odd Numbers
Arranging items in odd numbers creates a more balanced look. I mean creating arrangements of 1, 3, 5 or even seven items.
If an arrangement isn’t working for you, consider changing the height or scale of some pieces. Perhaps everything is too same-same, or the items are too large or small?
Add Greenery
Indoor plants add a pop of life and have a stack of health benefits, too (such as improving air quality and even reducing blood pressure).
I love a bigger range of stylish and affordable pots that you can place your plants in — it’s an easy way to add more materials and dimension to your shelf styling.
I’ve used a large brass pot, a grey terrazzo pot and several other vessels to display the plants on this shelf.
If you don’t have a green thumb, you can use artificial plants for the same visual impact, or you may like to check out our top 20 hard to kill plants here.
Consider Adding A Vase Of Things.
Another idea to decorate your shelf is to fill a large vase or jar with an item. I’ve filled this Freedom jar with light tea candles. But you might like to use toy cars or anything that showcases your personality. If the shelf is in your laundry, you could pick up on the theme of the space and fill it with pegs. The options are endless!
Make It Substantial.
Before you get to work on how to style your bookcase, consider the placement of your bookshelves – and the scale of them for your room. You’ll want it to be the main style element and have enough weight to be important. So here’s an idea: setting two identical bookshelves next to each other will help mimic the look of built-ins and feel grander. Or building them on either side of a TV or fireplace adds to one main focal point.
Don’t Stuff It Full.
Even if you have lots of books and special trinkets to display, try to weed out only the ones you truly love or find another spot for some. You’ll want to mix books with other decorative items and leave white space. When you fill your shelves with lots of little things, it’s too much for your eyes and brain to take in, so it just reads it as clutter. You want the things on your bookcase to be seen and appreciated (by you and others), not ignored.
Try To Find A Cohesive Colour Scheme.
I’m not saying you have to colour your books, but try to find one or two dominant colours to repeat repeatedly on the bookcase. It will be more soothing to the eye than tons of colours randomly. You might even want to try grouping books by colour per shelf if that looks good. Or you might want to go with a very neutral, non-colour scheme.
Ground Your Bookcase.
Put larger items like boxes or baskets or a stack of large coffee-table books at the bottom. The heaviest things (both physically and visually) should go on the bottom shelves.
Vary Heights And Depths.
how to style a real-life bookshelf
Lay your books both flat and horizontally. Put some decorative pieces closer to the back and some in front. For example, you could lean a photo near the back and put a small object in front of it. Or lean a larger photo and smaller one over top of one another. Add a large bowl or vase to add height. Or stack some books and then add an object on top. Varying the heights and depths creates interest and draws the eye.
Use Meaningful Items.
a simple method for styling your bookshelf
Have a least one or two objects that are meaningful to you. Maybe that’s a small piece of art or a couple of photos of family or friends. Or maybe it’s a special souvenir from a trip or period of your life that you loved. These things will draw your eye, so you want them to make you smile!
Use Books!
You don’t have to do this, but if you’re interested in using your bookshelf to store your books all in one spot, use them! Make sure to visually break up the space by stacking some, then laying some flat and leaning some. And mix in a few other little trinkets or natural objects for interest. It makes the space more interesting.
Have Fun With It!
Making your bookshelves meaningful and fun
Do something a little different. For example, have a minimalist shelf with only one object in the mix. Or line up a few of the same objects for an interesting focal display. Or turn your books backward for a change to create a calming monochromatic effect. Maybe add a plant or something from nature on top. And, as always, make sure to use meaningful and natural objects that you love within your display.
Forget Making It Perfect.
Your bookshelves are yours. They don’t have to be Instagram worthy. Display what makes you smile, and evolve your displays over time. And keep working on them. You’ll get them to a place where you’re happy.
Conclusion
So, there you have it – our top tips for styling your bookshelf. Remember to keep things interesting by mixing up your books’ shapes, sizes, and colours and using accessories to add visual interest. Have fun with it! And if you need any help putting these ideas into practice, don’t hesitate to reach out.
Faqs
Is It Ok To Stack Books On Top Of Each Other?
If need be, you can stack the books horizontally on top of each other in a rough pyramid shape, but be sure not to stack them too high, as all of that weight could jeopardise the boards and spines of the books at the bottom of the stack.
Should I Decorate The Top Of My Bookshelf?
Too many people think that anytime a shelf is in sight, there needs to be something resting on it. I’m sorry, but that’s not true. As a general rule, if you have under 2′ of space above kitchen cabinetry, very tall armoires or built-ins, don’t decorate the space.
How Do You Arrange Items On A Bookshelf?
Put heavier objects, like art books or storage bins, on the bottom of the shelves. Lighter objects, like paperbacks, should go toward the top.
Is It Better To Store Books Upright Or Flat?
Store them on a flat surface but not on the floor. Ideally, stand the books upright in the storage box. Always pack stacks of books with fore-edges facing the sides of the box so that if the load shifts, the “spines against spines” configuration guards against damage. Do not lay books flat on top of the upright ones.
How Do You Organise Books On The Floor?
If you don’t have that many books, you could create an attractive book decor feature by putting your books directly on the floor of a room. First, make several short stacks of books so that it’s easier to lay your hands on a book when you want it. Then, put bigger, heavier books on the bottom of your stacks.