Afternoon Project: Declutter Your Bookshelves

zealart Great ideas. Need to do that with mine. My bookcase would be very very empty if I got rid off the paperbacks. Most of them stand up nicely between book ends, so I don't see the problem.

the_misfit I agree that paperbacks are unlovely compared to, say, leather-bound law books. And I have reserved a few spaces for gold-embossed law books for that reason. But if paperbacks can't go on bookshelves, where do they go? Personally, I think bookshelf space should go almost exclusively to books - a few accessory objects, fine, but PRINCIPALLY vases or framed pictures or whatever means it's not a bookcase any more. Which is OK, it can be a hutch or something, but if you have a room full of such tchochki-filled hutches with ten paperbacks for garnish, you need to know that THAT ROOM IS NOT A LIBRARY.

We can have beauty and literacy, people. Don't set a bad example of American culture to the world!

baca I think that paperback books - save for a very few you are emotionally attached to - should have the same lifespan as your children. You don't own them. You merely possess them for a time and then send them out into the world.

storklady I personally dislike it when books are covered in white paper or in some other way unified. It can look pretentious and certainly looks too designed. Bookshelves no longer look like a library at that point and that's okay if it's the look you are going after. I sincerely doubt those books are read or even browsed through because they become nothing more than a whited-out design statement. Why not cover anything shaped like a book at that point because it's no longer about books. Books add character and color to a room. In the finest historic mansions you never see books unified by paper.

designchallenged I buy paperbacks at thrift stores and donate them back after reading, but normally have 5-6 paperbacks not yet read on one shelf of my family room bookshelf. They don't look bad -- I put a framed photo in front of them.

designchallenged Also, love the office chair in photo #7. Source?

jesr I completely agree with the other comments. Paperbacks are books and have a rightful place on bookshelves. A real library has books and maybe a few displays of photos and other items. But, principally it should be all about books. Once there are only a few books on the shelves then it becomes a display area and not a library. As a librarian and life-long reader, this is one view of mine that can't be swayed.

macau Um..."paperback books do not have a place on bookshelves" ?? I think that's exactly where they belong, no? I mean, we don't all have never-opened collectors' editions of the complete Encyclopedia Britannica lying around with which to style our book shelves?

rosebud3 I am trying hard to "unbusy" my spaces. I have a lot of paperbacks that I love and will keep forever and reread once a year. I took the advice of someone who posted on Houzz some time ago. I bought pretty patterned "photo boxes" and put paper backs of each author or topic or genre as a group in a box. It got rid of my eye clutter but I have my books.

katie32123 This kind of nonsense shows up everywhere these days. We're confused. Trends? Themes? Styles? What's the matter with books on bookshelves? That's why they're called bookshelves. We sort our books by content, not color (we REALLY don't get that concept). Since when does looks have anything to do with it? Paperbacks or hardcover, we have books in the house because we value them, refer to them, and read them! Our bookshelves are precious real-estate. They certainly aren't just for decoration.

kitter If you really want to declutter your bookshelves, get rid of all the stuff that is not books! Oh, and the important thing about a book is its contents, not its cover material, color or shape.
A really distressing ideabook.

Lesley Taylor Note to self: must purchase a display case for conversation pieces (but not too many pieces or it may appear cluttered). Oh yes, this cute bookcase is just the thing. I can re-purpose the bookcase and be environmentally responsible.
NOTE TO SELF: what a load of pretentious cobblers!

photogirlla I have huge bookcases in every room in my condo. I own way more books than clothes, which makes me an anomaly in LA. I bought Ikea BESTA for my bedroom to house all the paperbacks, notebooks, dvds, etc, and used open shelves/glass doors in the other bedroom, entryway, etc to display the prettier books. That way I didn't have to get rid of my escapism, but the place looked streamlined.

Laryssa Krauss Sorry, but these pics r made 4 people who don't have many books...or read as much as my fam does I gather. =( The pics r beautiful...but they r just that...pics. I don't live in a magazine...I live in my home. Book shelves r made 2 hold my books...& there we have MANY. ;-) Did I mention we may have an addiction 2 B&N? lol

rubyflewtoo If you love reading, you love books, and you love books on your bookshelves. Books are the feature. Unlike in many of these photos where they are just decorative items.

maiingan I have thousands of books and currently have 11-12 bookshelves throughout my home. At anytime I can find the book I need. I put them in subject order and this has suited me well. I have always dreamed of having bookshelves wall to wall and floor to ceiling in my dream office. I could then get rid of most of my bookshelves. However, this idea of taking books out and putting decorative things in is almost beyond me. This is because the bookshelves I have in my living room (four beautiful, tall cherry wood). I have left the top two shelves open for pictured frames of family and friends and my wolf Knick knacks. I also have realistic plants on top of bookshelves to give it more warmth. This actually looks good.
If I did what was asked, where would I put all of my books? When I see these beautiful shelves without books it breaks my heart because I could really use some of these.
Most of my paperback books I donate, and I save the ones I love. These I put in the two bookshelves I have in the guest room so family and friends can read them while they visit my home. Unfortunately, they are completely stuffed and i need to get another one. I have something for almost everyone because my interests vary greatly. I really enjoy seeing my guests read my books. Books are to be shared and treasured.
I hope people don't take this article to seriously and start covering up their pretty books or take them out of the order they have and try to colorize them. Some of these ideas may be good as long as drastic measures are not taken.
In addition, I've read every book on my shelves. The ones I haven't read are stored elsewhere. It has always been a pet peave when I'm asked if I've read all my books. Now I realize it is a valid question when I see these shelves almost empty of books in the article. It is obvious they are not serious readers like some of us.

Jack Rice A bookcase is for books. I keep a few curiosities and a tray of liquor on the shelf's in front of my books but the books are the star of the show. I do weed them from time to time but only to make room for what I am currently reading. I think that covering books with matching covers is a horrible idea, it turns them into props - fine if you are selling the house I guess. If you want to display collections of objects buy a curio cabinet.

catrine36 Have to admit I could never do this - I have too many books!

vmmc A very respected design magazine once featured a bookshelf "improved" by REVERSING the books so their uniformly colored end papers were shown. Obviously, no one was expected to actually READ them. I'm glad to see this article didn't suggest that.

When you "read" someone's bookshelves you discover wonderful things about them. A book spotted and shared on shelf has led to many memorable conversations for me and I find nothing sadder than a home without them.

As for leaving out the paperbacks... If you love and make use of a book, who cares what form it takes?

tsudhonimh I like cats and books on my bookshelves and decorative tchotchkes elsewhere. Because of cats, breakable decor is behind glass doors.

It's all SF or Fantasy, paperbacks on the upper shelves, hardcovers on the lower three shelves, and CD/DVD collection 7 shelves up from the bottom, plus a small CD player.

This was after building the cases, but before acquiring a set of chairs that went with the table, and before moving an antique cabinet to the wall on the left where the pictures are.

tsudhonimh First image didn't make it: here's the whole bookcase.

And, the books are alphabetical by author or editor, get weeded frequently - those are just the "keepers" of the SF&F.

photogirlla Tsudhonimh-- awesome bookcase.. and cat ( I have 2 myself) I like the lights too.

Jennifer Atkinson Really? I can't imagine taking my books off shelves to "unclutter" them, or make room for decorative clutter. Books are meant to be read, and paperbacks belong with other beloved books just as much as pretty hardbound books do.

Becky Querreveld As a paperback lover who wants nicely styled bookshelves, I buy colored rectangular shaped baskets or wallpaper covered boxes that are just about the same height as my paperbacks. I stand my books inside the basket (just like they would be standing on the shelves). Then I put the whole basket(s) on the shelf. It adds color, kind of disguises the books, works great as a bookend for the hardcover books and it's a great way to organize the paperbacks by "who I borrowed them from" or by author, or by "books to give away".

Bonnie Photogirlia...love the paint in your bedroom. Would you mind sharing the paint color and brand?

gisele0820 The phrase "all style, no substance" comes to mind. I previously packed away all our paperbacks and displayed the pretty stuff (family photos in silver frames, huge shell from Sierra Leon, carved bowl, etc). I unpacked my books because I preferred the uniform look of books grouped by color.

The rule is 2/3 books and 1/3 (or less) junk according to Joe Davis at http://jpdschoolofdesign.blogspot.com/2010/06/accessorize-by-exorcising.html

Not a bad guideline but your home should make you happy...you have to live with it. You like books? Have books. Just display them in a way that does not forget balance, scale, rhythm, etc.