Sometimes I think I should take up golf. Anyone can do it, right? I mean, it looks easy when you’re watching it on tv, just like the design shows. These folks just come in and style up a room. They make it look so easy. However, both golf and design come with a lot of practice and a few standard rules.  

If you’ve ever been left looking at a blank bookcase and wondering what to do with it, I’m here to give you a few tips so you can practice until it’s perfect. Just as with golf, there are rules and mechanics for design. Here are just a few for tackling that next bookshelf.

1. Start with a blank slate. When you don’t have any preconceived notions about where things “have” to go, then the world is your oyster.  

2. When it comes to a bookshelf, I believe in more is more. This might be the one place I take a maximalist approach to design. However, if you’re more of a minimalist then that works too. Just decide for yourself who you are and lean into it.

3. Make room for more than just books. Add personality with shapes and forms that balance the books. Something organic or round for instance is a great juxtaposition for the hard edges of all those books. 

4. Consider a bright pop of color or a fun pattern in the back of your shelves. Not a rule, but just a fun way to add a design element to the space.  

5. Bookshelves are a great place to display collections. Sprinkle them in or clump them all together, it’s up to you. You can see from my shelves that I did a little of both – mason jars all together on top and crocks in a checkerboard pattern on the shelves underneath.

6. Use art to add height in your shelves by leaning or hanging them in the back. This also adds another layer of dimension. You can also hang the art in front of the shelves as I did. It adds another kind of dimension and interest.  

7. Add in the books by stacking them horizontally as well as vertically. This gives visual interest and often times a platform on which you can place treasures. 

8. How you organize your books is up to you. Some people like to color code, others like to organize by subject, and yet others like to organize by size. There is no wrong answer as long as you stay consistent with your theme. Well, perhaps just one rule to follow: add books by weight. Meaning the heavier thicker books go on the bottom and then work up to the lightest books.

9. It’s important to vary the heights of the objects as well. I like to work in pyramids, moving from low to high and back down again. Also, think in threes or fives. Tall, medium, and short items group together nicely.

10. Keep in mind the proper scale. This is important. Do not add too many tiny things.  Your shelves will look cluttered, and you won’t be able to see anything from far away.  Now that doesn’t mean you can’t have a few small items. Just be sure to vary the sizes to keep the shelves visually interesting. 

Here is a picture of one set of bookshelves in my home. This bad boy took me two hours to style. I started with pretty much everything I owned and whittled it down to this. (As I said, I have a maximalist approach!) But don’t let that scare you. Just like golf is fun for the pros, this is fun for me. It’s a big giant puzzle that’s just waiting to be solved. And, just like puzzles, sometimes design gets to be too much. If that happens, step back or sleep on it then return to see it anew. When you come back, I promise inspiration will strike. Enjoy!