A bookcase can hold much more than just books.
Architecturally, a bookcase adds depth and visual interest to the room. Practically speaking, a bookcase adds storage and organizational space. Emotionally, there is something denlike and cozy about a solid bookcase. The decorating trick becomes style it to make the most out of its architectural, practical and emotional qualities. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Create a pattern with your items. One decorator trick is zigzagging items down the shelves. Don't allow them to line up like tin soldiers or to look boring. Give your books and accessories life by creating "movement" in how you place them in the bookcase.
2. Mix things up. Allow some books to stand vertically and stack some horizontally. You can line a group of books together vertically, then use three or four books stacked on top of one another as bookends to hold the vertical books in place. Display books like pieces of art. Consider whether you want the tallest volume in the middle or on an end. Consider grouping books by author, subject or even color to make the display more interesting.
3. Group like items together. Don't mix paperbacks with hardcover books, but separate them for a neater look. If you want to use part of the bookcase to display a collection, keep the collection together or in small groups. For instance, if you collect delicate Japanese vases, delegate an area of the bookcase to the vases alone. Grouping similar items together makes a greater decorative statement.
4. Leave room between displays. As tempting as it can be to display everything you have at once, stop introducing items to the bookcase once you are no longer able to leave several inches between each display. The blank spaces make it obvious that you have deliberately designed the bookshelf decor and makes the entire bookshelf look better organized.
5. Skip small items. You may love your collection of antique thimbles, but they're difficult to see unless someone is standing right over them. They're also just one more group of things you're going to have to dust. Opt instead for items that have a little heft. To determine if an item or group of items is adding to the decorative element of your bookcase, stand across the room. If you can clearly see the item or items, they are appropriate for the space.
6. Introduce texture. An old lamp with a woven lampshade, leather-bound books you found in an estate sale or a picture frame made of pebbles are all good ways to add visual interest through texture.
7. Get rid of symmetry. The bookcase will be far more interesting looking if you don't worry about one side being even with the other. You can have more books on the left than right or a larger collection on the right side than on the left. Resist the temptation to even everything out.
Tags: bookcase adds, items together, more interesting, that have, visual interest