Are your books becoming a strain on your storage space? They don't have to be. Make books functional as well as decorative. Here are some ways to use them creatively.
Instructions
Step 1
Stack coffee-table-type books to end-table height. Set a small glass top, round or rectangular, on the stack to make a perch for a lamp, beverages or whatever. Set your new table beside an easy chair.
Step 2
Make two stacks of coffee-table-type books side by side and place a long rectangular piece of glass over the stacks. Voilà! A coffee table.
Step 3
Create vignettes with books by propping up small ones on the back of a piano or on a ledge in the hall; standing up bigger ones at the back of a deep desk or chest of drawers (a lamp, framed photos and other items can sit in front of the books); or by putting them high up on the tops of kitchen cabinetry and armoires.
Step 4
Let the books play a role in a special centerpiece, mantel decor or tablescape. At Easter, for instance, you could display a basket of colored eggs, a stuffed bunny and a Peter Rabbit storybook.
Step 5
Give bookcases a tidy look so they become a plus in decor. Arranging the books by color and incorporating attractive collectibles into bookshelf displays can turn the shelving into a design statement, rather than a decorating distraction.
Step 6
Be creative in finding places for bookcases, especially when you have more books than space. Small bookshelves can often be squeezed into an entryway, hall or stairway landing, and a big one works great as a room divider.
Tips & Warnings
- If your books look sloppy, level the spines at the front of the bookcases.
- Don't have the books tilting at an angle. Instead, stand most of them up straight. You can use a few lying horizontally as bookends.
- Need some inexpensive but good-looking bookends? Glass block - sold at many home centers - is a lovely option, or use sand or pebbles to give weight to a hollow, but sturdy, opaque collectible.
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