One of the things we don’t like about having open book shelves, is that a mass of books can become somewhat oppressive, bearing down on a room, sucking up light. Lately, we’ve come across images of shelves where books are arranged in vertical and horizontal stacks, interspersed with art and objects. It seems that might be a fine solution to ‘lightening’ the look of bookshelves.

via Livet Hemma

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4 replies on “how to lighten the look of shelves filled with books

  1. I have interspersed art and other objects among the books, and this trick does work. However, the one guaranteed technique is to realize you just may have too many books. I am a self-proclaimed book lover, but after being honest with myself about the books I actually read and cherish, it was easier for me to cull my weighty book shelves. I donated them to others to read and enjoy. Besides, a public library (or using inter-library loan) has offered me free access to ‘consume’ as many books as I desire without having to physically store them somewhere.

  2. I have bookcases in the dining room and I, too, did not like the look. Years ago, I bought Ikea’s off-white cotton Roman shades. They fit perfectly. They still work and look good 10 yrs+. Bonus is less dust on the books.

  3. Really good point and something I have been contemplating. My 40 cartons of books are still in boxes as I haven’t yet built shelves for them. I miss some, others not at all, so it will be interesting to see what are “keepers” and what I will pass on. An other consideration: some are fine kept digitally. Others in real book form allow for flipping pages and discovery.

  4. I am in the process of designing book shelves in my living room, and know that I do not want to see them. I am contemplating some sort of scrim OR panels of painted steel that can have art attached to them via magnets. Lift the steel sheets on and off…(stay tuned).

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