I’m taking a bit of a detour from my Home Office Organization series this week with a look at my bookshelves. I often receive requests for not only bookshelf organization ideas but also just a general tour of what I keep on mine. It seemed fitting to share an all-in-one look at my bookshelves now after going over my Home Office Built-Ins last week.
Don and I are both huge book lovers and we have independently accrued quite the collection over the years. Don keeps his books in two large freestanding bookcases and a wraparound bookshelf feature of his desk in his home office. That is the one space in the house that I do not attempt to organize in keeping with my firm belief that each family member in our home is entitled to a space all their own to keep as they please since we have the room for it. His books are stored in a fashion I would personally refer to as “willy nilly.” I’m sure Don would be happy to film his own Bookshelf Tour for his YouTube channel, DisorganizedDon. I will only be sharing my personal book stash and bookshelf organization in this post and the coordinating video. Feel free to tweet Don @DisorganizedDon if you’d like to request a look at his!
I keep my books stored between two rooms in the house, the first of which is my Home Office. The Built-Ins I discussed last week have twelve ample bookshelves total. I tend to organize my books first my general category, by series (where it applies), and by size.
I split the left side of my built-in unit into several topic categories, which is easy to do because of the divider that supports and also separate the shelves. I have dedicated the left section to historical fiction, dystopian society, and fantasy-based literature (top left photo). The right section’s top two shelves are where I store books that I haven’t read yet, with hardcover books on the top shelf and paperbacks on the middle (top right photo). I have some reference books on the bottom shelf. The right side of the built-in unit contains my Peanuts collection, childhood and young adult fiction favorites, and crafting related books on the left section. The right section is where I keep all of my animal related books, including nonfiction stories and reference materials. It made sense for me to have this particular section dedicated to that topic, because it is located at the furthest corner of my office right next to my grooming desk. I’ve also chosen to display some photos and sentimental figurines and items since I have the space for them.
I store the other half of my book collection in our master bedroom. We have two tall freestanding bookcases flanking the large picture window looking out to the back of our house (which is a nice juxtaposition now that I think of it considering my home office bookshelves flank a picture window overlooking the front of the house). I purchased the two Cadence bookshelves from Crate & Barrel when we moved into the house in 2007. They are unfortunately no longer available, but Crate & Barrel currently stocks the Payton Tobacco Bookcases, which are practically identical to the ones I have in shape and size.
Each of these two bookcases has six shelves. I organize each shelf by general category and size just as I do in my home office. I also utilize some horizontal storage (book stacking or piling) to give a more varied look. It also comes in handy for some books that are too tall to fit in the shelves vertically. I have numbered each shelf from top to bottom as shown in the photos above:
1. African American Literature
2. Favorite Books from High School & College
3. Misc. Paperback Fiction
4. Misc. Paperback Fiction
5. Misc. Hardcover Fiction
6. Art & Art History
7. Marriage & Family Planning
8. Gratitude Journals & Poetry
9. Personal Wellbeing & Spirituality
10. Nonfiction, Autobiographies, & Biographies
11. Yoga, Fitness, & Nutrition
12. Favorite Children’s Book
I share my Bookshelf Organization & Tour in detail in the video (shown below) if you’re interested in a closer look. Check back next week for another Home Office Organization post and coordinating video!
* I am not affiliated with any of the brands or stores mentioned in this blog post or video. All opinions are my own. *
