One of my favorite things to decorate are bookcases / bookshelves. It is a work of art, and you can really turn them into showstoppers. But … you need to know what you are doing. It is a process.
You can find bookcases or bookshelves in just about any room in your home; and they are a staple in home design, but do you stare at your bookcase wondering where or how to begin? Keep reading to get your answers …
SOURCE: Bloom in the Black
BLOG POST BY:
Carla Gentle with Design Realign, Inc.
I grew up with built-in bookshelves in my living room. It was one unit about 4’w x 4’h built into the wall. The unit was on one half of the wall and the other half of the wall was the piano. It was the perfect spot for the piano and balanced the wall nicely.
I remember as a little girl loving those bookshelves. My mom never put one book on the shelves, but instead, dressed them with her most beautiful vases, décor, and knickknacks. I, personally, would have added a few books into the mix for added texture. I just know we kids were to not get too close because she didn’t want us breaking anything.
There is a lot of information out there about how to decorate bookcases. The best way to sum it up is to follow these five, scratch that, six, no seven steps to lead guests to believe you hired a pro😊:
HOW TO DECORATE A BOOKSHELF IN 5—OK—6—NO—IN 7 STEPS
Choose a color scheme: This will make your bookshelf look intentional.
Collect all your decor items: This will help you style faster.
Try Options: This will make your decorating look considered.
Use Visual Triangles: This will keep the eye moving and create cohesion.
Spread your finishes: This will make your styling look polished.
Fill in the gaps: This will make your bookshelves feel finished.
Add plants! Plants! Did I mention plants?
In addition to these steps, have fun with your design by adding wallpaper to the back of your bookcase and bookshelves or another type of wall treatment. You can also paint the back of the wall of your unit a different color from the actual unit.
All three examples above are big mistakes. There is nothing wrong with having alot of color like the left example, as long as you style in a mix of different materials with it and not have all glass or as much clutter. The unit in the middle has nice decor but way too much of it. The eye doesn't even know where to begin to look and this breaks the rule of 'the rule of thirds' (The rule of thirds is discussed later in this post). The unit on the right has so many things wrong, I don't even know where to begin.
To ensure you don't make similar mistakes, read and study the following steps to style your own beautiful bookshelves. I go into detail, to eliminate confusion that many people experience.
STEP 1: Choose a Color Scheme
This tip alone will save you so much time. Ditch items that don’t fit into your color scheme — no more wondering if something should stay or go. Creating a color scheme is actually pretty easy.
There are several ways to go about this, but below is an example to serve as a GUIDELINE:
First, choose a main color to start. This can be the primary color you use on the walls, an accent color, or color found from a rug or piece of art you love. Basically, if you love the color, use it.
Next, select a color or two a few shades lighter, darker, or grayer than your main color. This adds dimension and variety, so things don’t feel too overkill.
Then, pick one or two neutrals. These will ground your color palette and bring in more texture and materials. Wood and metal objects make for great neutrals!
Finally, pick a complementary or contrasting color. This is the color that will tie it all together and add a bit of extra appeal. This color will be used the least but will provide that pop of unexpected color.
I taught an online design class that touched on color, and we discussed the color wheel. Opposite colors on the color wheel are called ‘complementary colors’. This means they work well together. However, it is IMPORTANT TO NOTE that one of the two complementary colors needs to be the dominant color. If you have about the same amount of each complementary color, they will actually conflict.
Examples of Complementary Colors:
Blue and orange
Purple and yellow
Red and green
A perfect example of my own personal use of complementary colors is when I used to have a red door propped behind the sofa against a green wall. They complemented each other beautifully and that red door was quite a focal point in the room.
BEAUTIFUL CONTRAST,
DISTRIBUTION OF BOOKS, AND A SHOWSTOPPER
SOURCE: Hike N Dip
Source: One Kindesign
STEP 2: Collect All Your Decor
Gather everything you would consider in decorating your bookshelf. Set the items out on a large folding table or other large surface of every knickknack, book, and art piece you would like to consider. From there, organize your items into categories and like colors to help make sense of your ‘design’.
Stick to your color scheme from step #1. If it doesn’t fit into your scheme, it loses its spot at the table!
Take this opportunity to curate your book collection. You don’t have to stick to the purely decorative or brag-worthy — choose the few that are very special to you and display those, as well as some of the prettier ones. This is a great opportunity to bring a little nostalgia and history to your bookshelves.
I love old books. I have a few from when my parents and grandparents were young. Some of these books were handed down to them and date back to the 1800s! The old covers back then were mostly neutral in color (brown, beige, black, green, and blue) and make for great bookcase décor.
Mix it up and turn some books on its side, as well as having the book spines face the back of the bookcase so the pages are exposed for a different look.
A LITTLE GOES A LONG WAY
This picture shows you don't need to own alot of books to make a statement with them. These books are positioned well and kept consistent with their neutral color scheme. Something else to consider for a different look is to have the book spines facing the back of the unit and expose the pages.
SOURCE: SF Girl by Bay
STEP 3: Experiment with Shelf Vignettes
OK, now it is time to start decorating your bookshelf. You’re starting with a blank slate, which can be intimidating for many; so, KEEP IN MIND YOU WILL BE REARRANGING YOUR ITEMS A FEW TIMES BEFORE YOU’RE HAPPY WITH THE RESULT. Even the best of designers don’t always get it right the first time.
Here are some things to keep in mind:
Start with the basics. On each shelf, use something vertical, something horizontal, and tie those together with a round or organic element. For example, you could place a few books alongside one another for your vertical element, a tray as your horizontal element, and a cool sculpture as your organic element.
Use an odd number of objects in each vignette. Have you heard of the rule of three? The eye likes odd numbers. KEEP IN MIND THAT A COHESIVE GROUPING WILL APPEAR AS ONE OBJECT. An example of this is a small plant set on top of a horizontal book.
NOT SO NICE DECOR BUT GREAT EXAMPLE OF THE RULE OF 3
Aside from the fact I am not a fan of this decor, these decorated bookshelves are a perfect example of how to properly place the items knowing the eye sees things in odd numbers. For example, the third bookshelf shows three items clumped together and are considered one item. To the right is one more item. If all four items were placed together, it wouldn't work, but because there is space between the grouping on the left and the item on the right, it works!
SOURCE: The Turquoise Home
Vary the height and size of your objects. The eyes will flow freely around your styled vignettes by varying the height and visual weight of the pieces you use. If you put a vase and a sculpture next to each another that are roughly the same size, it will feel off and unbalanced. Pair your items with things that are significantly taller, shorter, wider, and so forth, so you’ll have a more balanced grouping.
Vary the texture and sheen of your objects. Avoid having too much of the same material such as all metal, wood, or glass; and avoid too much of the same sheen such as all shiny or dull. The exception to this is if you have a special collection to display in large quantity and not just a few pieces, then the continuity works in your favor.
Add depth. Don’t place a bunch of items all in a row (for example, along the middle of the shelf). Be sure to put objects behind and in front of one another. Try hanging a picture on the back of the shelf, leaning against the back, or displaying it on a tiny easel and then placing a couple of items to the front.
MY OWN EXAMPLE BELOW SHOWS KEY MATERIALS TO USE
I redesigned and decorated the bookcase below for a client who was a farm girl. I found many of these items in her basement. I specifically showcase this project so you can see I didn’t have much space to work with for each shelf. They were small and triangle in shape, but this just goes to show you can do a lot with little—and awkward—space.
The before picture shows all shelves contain only one material … glass/porcelain, except the one copper metal plate. Very bland and no visual appeal. My design introduces several materials including wood, metal, glass, paper, and you can’t forget the plant! I also used a neutral and organic color scheme. Because the shelves were so small and triangle in space, it was a bit difficult to run with a visual triangle effect in the placement of items, but it still worked very well.
BEFORE AFTER
STEP 4: Use Visual Triangles
Working your way from top shelf to bottom shelf, repeat in a triangle the same color, material, or items to keep the eye moving and help create a cohesive look.
SOURCE: Hike N Dip
THIS IS KEY
The bookshelves above use the visual triangle effect with the knickknacks and books. They also have a nice mix of materials and a consistent color scheme. And, lastly, they applied the 'Rule of Thirds', which you will learn about below.
STEP 5: Spread Your Shelf Decor Evenly
Now that you have some styled shelves, take a step back and see if the whole unit feels balanced. Is one side tightly packed while the other spacious? Do you see too much color in one area and not enough in another? How about materials?
Do you want your shelves all full, sparse, or an even mix of the two? If your plan is to decorate all your shelves to have the same amount of “stuff” in each, eyeball everything from a distance and make sure there are no uneven spots.
If you want to create a mix, I find it helpful to do a shelf on one side, then an equally full (or sparse) shelf on the opposite side. If you end up with three full shelves clumped together, take a picture of them so you can reference them later. Then, pull one down and recreate it in a more appropriate spot referencing the photos you took. Then, place a spacious vignette in its place.
Spread your colors, materials, and dominant shapes around equally. Step back again to scan your work. This time, take note of any colors that are dominating one area, especially if it’s a color that stands out. For example, black is very popular right now. If you have a black bookcase and shelves, the white items will be very noticeable; so, you don’t want a bunch gathered in one spot. It won’t look right. Knowing this, you will want to be intentional to ‘sprinkle’ the white pieces around evenly. Follow this same process to evaluate and distribute your materials first, then your shapes.
Apply the ‘Rule of Thirds’. This is not to be confused with the rule of 3, which is based on how the eye sees in odd numbers.
I added vertical lines to the photo below to help you visualize an evenly divided bookcase or bookshelf into thirds. A well-designed bookcase or bookshelf will be evenly divided in a similar way, which is most appealing and easy on the eye.
Keep in mind as mentioned above in the section about the eye seeing things in odd numbers, multiple items put together can be considered as one item. Therefore, you can have multiple items on a bookshelf that would group together as one and be in one third of the three sections.
If you are confused, that is understandable and common. Keep studying the picture, and you should see the three distinct sections of the bookshelves. The idea is to create adequate and even space throughout the bookshelves to best highlight the showcased items.
SOURCE: The Turquoise Home
STEP 6: Fill in the Gaps
It is inevitable — you’re going to have gaps. This may be surprising to you at first, but if you think about it, even if you have a lot of things, they aren’t going to all work together. If you find yourself having to not include more items than you originally planned, that is OK. You will just want to make your shelves more along the sparse spectrum than the full spectrum. Even with less, you can still accomplish the goal of a bookcase or bookshelf that is balanced, harmonious, and cohesive.
STEP 7: Add Plants
Make sure to add plants! Enough said …
CONCLUSION
I know this seems like a lot, and it is. But, if you follow these guidelines, the compliments will start rolling in! It doesn't matter what your design style is whether it is contemporary, modern farmhouse, boho, or glam. If you apply the principles and steps listed above, there is no reason why you can't have stunning bookshelves that you decorated all on your own. Have fun with this. It is addicting!
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