I have a “design” confession to make.

Sometimes …when I go into other people’s houses …I notice their bookcases. And… if I’m in the room long enough I start figuring out in my mind how I would rearrange it…just in case they give me permission to do so…and if I’m not careful my imagination runs wild!

And I think about all the possibilities: What would I add? How would I rearrange the items on the shelves? What would I eliminate?

Don’t feel like you are the only one I would do this to. I do it at my OWN house as well.

And I’ve been trying for months to redo the shelves in my family room. SO when I came across an article recently in the REAL SIMPLE solutions book I was reminded of how to put together a bookcase by adding different elements to the books you already have on your shelves.

 VASES: 

Keep your empty vases on your bookshelf. You can cluster them according to different sizes, shapes or colors.

COLLECTIONS: 

Assemble a collection of random objects-such as a bowl, a book and a frame-that have the same color. Or put all of the same type of object on your shelves-like frames.

Look to your fireplace mantel or side tables to find items that you can move to your bookcase-such as a clock or an interesting object-like a ceramic bird. They place them in a different way than you would expect. For example, stack a few books and place the clock on top.

STORAGE BOXES:

Attractive wooden or woven models-or nice decorative boxes can hold your everyday items like remotes, batteries for the  controls, meaninful loose photos, etc.

ARRANGING YOUR BOOKS: 

Place your books loosely in some places and snugly in others; arrange them vertically and horizontally. If you’ve got several coffee table or art books, stack them horizontally with the spines telling a story–all on individual artists, gardening, or travel destinations, for example. Or how about arranging by color?

If a dust jacket on one of your large books is a favorite, try leaning it against the back of the shelf (like a painting). Or if you have a small painting that gets lost on a wall, place it between books on a shelf.

DECORATE “OUTSIDE THE BOX”:

Be daring. Do something that you wouldn’t expect on or in a bookcase-make the area visually appealing by trying something out of the ordinary-oversized objects on the top of your bookcase, folded throws on a self, fresh flowers in a vase or lots of small objects tucked away in your bookcase

 So my advice to all of you with nothing but books in your bookcases: pavck some of those books away and mix things up abit OR call me to come over. I’d be happy to conjure up some wild and crazy ideas for your shelves!

For more ideas on decorating your bookshelves visit Real Simple.

Happy Decorating!

Debs

Images:  BHG, Domino, Point Click Home, Real Simple, Southern Accents