How to beautifully arrange books on a shelf

It will be useful for people who have an extensive home library to learn how to successfully arrange books on open shelves so that they look beautiful and neat. The more books there are in different formats and sizes, the more likely they are to look cluttered on open shelving. However, there are tricks to avoid this.

What to consider when arranging books on a shelf

The recommendations below will help give the interior of the room completeness and style, even if the owner of the apartment does not have design abilities.

Height distribution

Surely all books will have different heights. To make it look neat, you should alternate copies of different sizes so that groups of books form triangles. It does not matter whether the corner is formed by the largest or the smallest books, the main thing is symmetry.

Combining books and decorative elements

If you arrange all the books in rows, it will look boring and cluttered (unless absolutely all of them belong to the same series, which is unlikely). It is better to alternate between arranging in a row and laying out in piles. This will visually smooth out the fact that all publications have a different appearance.You can also dilute the picture with various figurines and other decorative elements if you correctly arrange them among groups of books.

Symmetry and compatibility

It is not necessary to display all books according to color, size, series. It is enough to make a few reference points that will create the illusion of order as a whole. For example, you can distribute books of certain series along the edges, and those that are not included in any of them can be carefully placed between them.

Color, size, theme

Particular attention should be paid to paired items: they should be kept nearby. These are also reference points, and the more of them there are, the less noticeable the unsuccessful places will be (books that are not included in any group and look disordered).

Also relevant to this point is the rule that the heavy should be at the bottom and the light at the top. The lower shelves should be filled with encyclopedias, thick multi-volume publications and other heavy books. Thin books should be left at eye level and above, which even visually seem light. It is better to leave more free space at the top, but at the bottom it is better to fill everything closely. In general, a rack designed in this way will look organic and correct than if this rule is not followed.

REFERENCE! Cover colors are the most obvious way to combine books. It is necessary to distribute them into several groups, each of which should preferably be further shaped according to size. It is better to place at the edges those color groups that contain the most elements, and leave the smallest ones in the center.It is best not to leave more than three different colors on one shelf, unless they are neutral or 100% coordinated shades.

Free space

If space allows, then you should not place all the books close to each other. It is better to distribute them into groups with empty spaces between them. This will prevent the rack from merging into a single spot.

You should not abuse free space either. If there is too much of it left, the effect will be the opposite, so in such cases you should add decorative elements to the picture. This can include figurines, decorative flowers in pots or artificial bouquets, photo frames, figured candles, lamps and much more that can stand on a shelf for many months without regular use.

Multilayer compositions

You can create entire compositions from books and other objects. For example, when there is free space in front of small books, it can be filled with a figurine. Or you can place a large book at the far wall of the shelf, and put a stack of smaller ones in front of it. This will create several layers on the horizontal surface that go deep into the shelving, making the bookshelves look not like storage, but like a large decorative composition that contributes to the overall interior of the room.

Order

Keeping your bookshelves organized is a simple task, but many people neglect it. But any created composition will be destroyed if you gradually change places of its elements, thoughtlessly add new ones, or remove something.

IMPORTANT! After reading, the book must be put back in its place, otherwise the diligent creation of an aesthetically attractive order on the shelf will lose its meaning.

It’s not worth mentioning regular wiping of dust, which accumulates especially thickly around books. It should be brushed not only from shelves, but also from covers and other decorative elements.