Four Creative Ways to Store Books
Having books is objectively good. They teach you things, help you relax, and, frankly, make you look a little smarter in front of guests. But if they are dirty, the last one will fall apart. Your books should be well organized, not only because you want to be flexible when company comes, but also because you need to keep everything on hand that allows you to study and relax.
Organizing books on a bookshelf
First, let’s talk about what to do if you already have a bookshelf but it’s looking a little cluttered. The first thing you should do is take down all your books and sort them using the decluttering method of your choice, getting rid of any unnecessary items by donating them to your local store or library. The problem with books is that they are among the easiest things to come up with excuses for when you start looking at them. Don’t let yourself say, “What if one day I need a reference to that chapter on the Russian Revolution of 1905?” Unless you’re an expert in Russian history, you probably won’t do this. Be serious. Chances are you will never use this book again, but if you need a little information, you can find it on the Internet. Having too many books that you will never read again is not a badge of honor; it’s clutter that makes it harder to access the books you want to read.
Once you’ve whittled down your collection, it’s time to put the volumes back on the shelf. Classify all the books you deleted as you see fit. You can arrange the stacks by size, color, or genre, but you should keep them all together once you put them in place. Use the Organizational Triangle thinking system for this: each item should have its own place and be stored together with similar items. For what it’s worth, my books are organized by topic and then alphabetized by author’s last name within those chunks, but I’m a former Barnes and Noble employee, so those habits die hard.
Another thing B&N taught me about hanging books on shelves is that they need to look nice, so consider using something to separate your sections, whether it’s a photo frame or a decorative storage box. If you have the space, you should take out your favorite books and turn them right side out. This breaks up the monotony on the shelf and makes the entire display more visually appealing.
The coolest shelves and tools for storing books
I’m lucky enough to have a built-in bookshelf above the window in my apartment, and I have a smaller shelf on hand to store the books I read regularly and want to have access to, but there are a lot of really cool shelving options if you need something from begin.
First, I’ve seen some cool hacks online that suggest using straps to hold books individually on the wall, creating a sort of gallery wall out of them. It’s too much work for me, but this shelf with built-in straps is not. You secure your books with straps to the underside of the floating shelf and then put whatever you want on top, making it the perfect storage tool.
If you don’t have wall space, I love this tree shaped shelf. It has a much smaller footprint than a standard bookshelf, making it easy to fit into small spaces while still providing an attractive appearance. It has separate sections so you can organize your books by category.
A front-facing bookshelf is good for anything that has an interesting cover or an unusual size that might break up the flow of a more traditional row of books. This shelf has both standard and front shelves to ensure everything you have has somewhere to fit.
Finally, for true accessibility, why not consider a revolving bookcase? It’s enough to serve as a decoration on its own, plus it allows you to quickly access any book just by rotating it, so you don’t have to think too much about putting the books you use most often on a shelf that will comfortable. easier to reach; they are easy to reach.