Brilliant Decorating Ideas to Spruce Up Your Bookshelves

To give a workspace or reading nook cohesion, upholster your floating shelves or cubbies in the same fabric as your seating. We love the contrast between the graphic houndstooth print and butterfly motif in this space designed by Studio Ashby. The stacked floating cubbies achieve great dimension, too.

Bookshelf storage is a great way to transform that awkward space under your stairs into something beautiful. Decorated by Regan Baker Design, this one is actually a secret passageway that opens up into a storage closet—bookcases are the perfect decoys for hidden rooms.

Instead of splurging on a shelving unit, simply stack your books in neat pile against the wall. If you stack them close enough to your bed, you could use your books as a makeshift bedside table, too.

A Peter Rogers portrait of Alex Hitz's close friend, the late Nan Kempner, hangs in the library of his Los Angeles house. "The room doesn't get a lot of light, so I decided to make it cozy and turned it into an English-style portrait room, which is ridiculous, but fun," he says.

Meet the easiest DIY bookshelf ever—this side chair is doubling as a bedside table and a bookshelf. The effortlessness has a charming appeal but it doesn't look sloppy in the slightest.

A custom peacock-blue lacquer by Fine Paints of Europe give depth and richness to the library of a Chicago townhouse. Designer Steven Gambrel dialed up color here and throughout the home to compensate for Chicago's long winters.

Have a blank wall and a few extra books with nowhere to go? Install a slim wall shelf to solve both problems in style.

Orange paint (Pratt & Lambert's Orange Spice) sets off the Palladian details of the bookcase in the living room of an Atlanta house. "I wanted that saturated color, as deep as I could get it," designer Kay Douglass says. "It almost becomes an art piece and helps make the room, instead of being just a place to store things. One of the biggest design mistakes people make is cluttering their world with too many things."

If you have a reading nook in your bedroom, keep your books within reach by setting up rows of floating shelves. They bring both color and structure to the space while also sprucing up a lackluster corner, as seen in this bedroom designed by Arent & Pyke.

Compact and understated, this vertical shelving unit makes books looks like they're floating on the wall without actually having to pick up a hammer. Oh, and we love the mini chair on the top shelf for a subtle touch of whimsy.

Put a large-scale piece of artwork in between two bookcases in a more formal sitting area, as Studio DB did here. It'll create a nice a sense of symmetry and set the tone for the color scheme.

Get creative with the way you display your books. As seen in this minimalist space, the books are stacked in alternating compositions, one pile laying horizontally and the other vertically. They achieve consistency by facing the page-side outward, though.

In a California cottage designed by Stephen Shubel, mirrors installed along the back of the built-in shelving give the wall depth.

This asymmetric open cubby situation designed by 2LG Studio brings some offbeat intrigue to an otherwise empty wall. Fill yours with plants and vases to break things up.

The only thing that can make a built-in reading nook dreamier is built-in book storage, as exemplified in this oasis designed by Studio DB.

In Deirdre Heekin and Caleb Barber's Vermont cottage, a bookcase is designed with a mantel-like shelf "to make it hearth like, since we don't have a proper fireplace," Heekin says.

Take note from this space decorated by Arent & Pyke if you're looking for an understated way to add excitement to your bookshelves while also disguising materials. The shiplap walls are painted a lovely cool hue for a polished aesthetic.

If your bedside table is open, stack your books underneath it fill in the gaps. This low to the ground vibe is very Wabi Sabi.

Frame your door with floor-to-ceiling built-in shelving for a bookish border. Not only will it help you keep your collection organized, but it'll beautify the walls.