https://www.houzz.com/magazine/5-ways-to-style-shelves-like-a-pro-stsetivw-vs~154957323

Is the top actually built-in or resting on the base? If it isn't too complicated, I'd consider removing it. Then pack away the small decorative items, group the photos nicely on the base, add a lamp and put some art on the walls.

Also, your pup is SO cute.

This seems like a more private room, not for entertaining. You are surrounded by personal photos and memories. That would make me happy. I never, never decorate my house ( this is our sixth) for anyone but my family. If I like something, I use it. If my husband likes something, I incorporate it. I aim for a personal space for us. If our friends enjoy it, that’s a bonus. My style is dated, but, then again, this house is quite old so my furniture fits. What would make you and your loved ones happy and comfortable?

I'd put every book I had in there. Remove all the decor items, hide them is the cabinets if you can't part. Larger photos, matt and reframe as family gallery, some smaller ones maybe can mix in with books. Turn the chair even with wall, add a footstool, side table and lamp. Library.

I see what appears to a bird cage and the chair. Does the room get used for anything now that you have a different family space? Could you benefit from a sewing room, a puzzle table, a study space???? Do you have a collection of some sort that could be featured? I imagine that if you identified a purpose for the room it might suggest better content for the shelves instead of just styling them for the sake of putting items on the shelves.

A pet is a great accessory in any home. :-) As cherry cabinets go those are pretty nice, so I would leave them alone and try reaccessorizing them. As palimpsest said, there are too many photos in frames. Try removing at least half of the pictures and adding some books and objets of different sizes for variety. Remove things that you picked up as a bargain (if that's true of any of the items displayed). Keep in mind basic decluttering advice such as does it spark joy, which is another way of saying do you enjoy looking at the object because it's beautiful or has a specific memory attached to it? Look at pictures on Houzz to see how others have styled bookcases. There isn't necessarily one right way. Just changing things up might be an improvement for you. We all start looking past things once we get used to them as you said.

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It would also help to know how this room relates to adjoining areas - do you have to walk through here to get to the larger space beyond it? What other rooms lead into this space?

Don't get rid of the bookcase. A future buyer who doesn't want it knows it is a snap to tear out, but it will help the price of your house if a future buyer is looking for a home office.

Put books in it if you have them, and if not, regroup the photos so they are not so evenly spaced out, and separte them with pleasant objects in various shapes, including sentimental ones (like if you still have a child's stuffed toy, or a hat from a favorite trip)

Something I learned on Houzz regarding shelf decor…1/3 books, 1/3 decor and 1/3 empty space. It’s worked nicely for me.

You just need to edit your shelves a bit and add some groupings. For the top shelf on the right I might remove both framed photos and just have the container with the balls. Much more simple and ”calm.”

I like the examples from kandrewspa. Here’s one more…

Thank you!

Pali-The home decor accessory display comment will def help me figure this thing out. I never thought of that and you’re absolutely right. And it’s funny because I got most of these at a high end specialty “Knick knack” store. And now “what was I thinking?” But I’m also with remodeling 1840 how can I part with family photos? Hopefully I can find a compromise. Chloe, Love the diagram; it’s the best one I’ve seen.

Michelle, if you can't part with family photos, put them in groupings on a few shelves. I think that will work better than on every shelf. You can also lay down some books and put photos on top. Nothing on the top of the cabinets is my suggestion.

Great advice above - FWIW I recently redid a set of shelves that had a lot of family photos that I wanted to keep but the jumble of frames made the shelves seems fussy and outdated -

after a lot of trial and error, I ended up using the blocky acrylic frames from Micheals - now all you see is the photos and it really cleaned up the look - just an idea

Lala that’s an interesting suggestion. I may buy one and stand back and see how it looks.

This is how that room ties into the living space, family room and kitchen

It’s a sunken den? It truly is the stupid room. Remove the built in, remove the half wall, raise the floor, extend the kitchen floor into the space. Oh sorry, you wanted picture frame ideas…

I never like shelving crammed with stuff just to fill the shelves so I think if keeping them is the choice then a less is more attitutude is the right one. Keep what you love and toss the rest andbe brutal take it all off and then only add what you love . I would remove the shelving put it in the garage and hang some nice art on that wall that makes you smile.

We have three electronic picture frames, back parlor, kitchen, library. These are loaded with family pictures and vacation shots. These frames can be programmed to display the pictures in timed increments. On my library shelves, we are overloaded with books and I have to cram a few framed photos and pieces of pottery on a few shelves. We read a lot and our cases reflect our interests-woodworking (more than one shelf), cookbooks that don’t fit in the kitchen shelves, history, murder mysteries, travel, antiques, etc. Our shelves reflect us and you can make your shelves tell your family’s story. After you give it some thought, take everything 😲 off your shelves and add back the important things. Take some pictures as you go and that might help you edit. This should be fun!

Have you considered using removable wallpaper behind the shelves ? If you don’t want to introduce a pattern maybe choose a light colored textured paper instead. Should be a fairly easy DIY especially if shelves are removable.

If the shelves are removable, taking out the top shelf on the two outside sections and the lower shelf in the center section would really open it up.
Love the idea of a lighter background too. You could test that look by putting poster board in back.

We built in 2021 and did some built-ins. Based on what I paid, your built-ins would probably cost $15-20K to replace, so just keep that in mind when people tell you to rip them out!

I would be tempted to paint them the same color as your trim, or same color as the kitchen cabinets, to lighten and update that whole room.

This looks like a cozy reading room to me, separate, but not isolated. I agree that there are an awful lot of pictures and knick knacks that make the bookcases look cluttered. I understand the 1/3 books, 1/3 decor, 1/3 open space rule, and try to follow that in my public space rooms, but I also believe that a wall of books in a library-type space is also attractive...your stupid room would be the perfect space for books, a couple of comfy reading chairs with good lighting and an ottoman. And the storage provided below the shelves is always welcome for games, puzzles, etc.

Decorpatti that’s what I was leaning toward. Change out the chair to leather, maybe have two. And reading light. It did serve as a computer room so it has a pretty desk you can’t see, but getting rid of. Pitiful, I don’t read anything that would look good in a bookcase, silver, red, purple bindings, but perhaps I can find photo albums that look like books. But I love dramatic home libraries

I think turning it into a reading/puzzle/ game room is a good idea. 2 or 3 club chairs with an ottoman or two, as well as a table for a pretty backgammon board or something to be displayed. I like Chispa’s idea of painting the bookcase to lighten and modernize it, but if the wood is too nice, maybe a pretty grasspaper behind the shelves would provide interest. Also, dark shelving is very stereotypical of a library/reading room, so there’s that to consider.
I had a lot of pictures in my library on the shelves (too many) and they were dust magnets! My daughter gave me an Aura frame and I so love it. Its not wonderful looking, but it’s very neutral, and I absolutely adore that the pictures change. I have so many more than I did with all of those frames out. Sometimes when I walk through the room and see a picture it reminds me of a wonderful time I haven’t thought about in years, it really brightens my day.

If the shelves are removable, you could take them ALL out and use the interior walls of the bookcase for art. But you keep coming back to photos, so it sounds like that's your happy place..

If you go with digital frames, two cozy chairs there would be great - we find ours to be mesmerizing and visitors often watch it like a TV. I do think one digital framen a given room is better unless you set them for a very long display interval; otherwise they will compete

.

Here's a VERY rough mock up of a lighter background with fewer shelves. But adding LED undershelf lighting to brighten the contents and using more cohesive frames might be an interesting twist as well. Good luck!

I get the family photo thing....I like the vintage look of the frames. But I would group the photos instead of having them stand by themselves. Group about 5 together one in front of the other - smaller ones in front, taller in back. You wont' see the entire photo of some of them, but you'll have space to put books and other stuff, and leave space open.

Hallet, gotta love the sarcasm. Someone already made a snarky comment about the sunken den. And you’re right, didn’t ask. Actually we were going to do what you suggested when we built the addition but you should know it changes the basement steps. We weren’t willing to sacrifice the space in the basement to reconfigure the steps as they would have to turn. Our basement serves as a weight room and media room and one room could serve as a bedroom as it’s to code. But I’m not worried about the sunken den as the homes in my neighborhood sell in 2 weeks for 7 figures and they have sunken dens.