Right now I am loving...

...White Books!!

I noticed my bookcase looked a little cluttered the other day... but I can'y possibly get rid of any of my beloved books! So I thought I might try something new and cover them all in white for a while.

This should freshen up the bookcase and give my accessories the attention they just don't seem to get with all of the multi-colored books.

Check out some of this imagery I found to fuel my inspiration...

I Found Just What I Needed

I have been looking lately for a small book case (well calling it a book case may be overstating the need) but somewhere to stack books in my daughters nursery. As you can tell Orange is pretty much my only accent color, so trying to find just the right thing, can prove to be a bit of a challenge. 

This morning I was looking through the new CB2 catalog and there it is!! the perfect piece.

My order is already placed, I can't wait for it to arrive.

I Really Like Window Seats

I Really like window seats, there is almost nothing better on a chilly day than to curl up with a good book, and sit in the morning light. This is why in a lot of my Children's Rooms you will see me putting these in. I think it's a great habit to get the kids in and its also a great tool to use to expand into a desk/bookcase/ storage unit without overwhelming the room.

A few tips:

• Include storage under the seat, it will make it a bit higher to sit on than normal, bit its the perfect spot for a blanket or two.
• Be generous with the pillows, that will give you maximum flexibility. Also if possible go with 100% down pillows as they will be a lot softer and easier to mold to the shape you need.
• Make sure you have good lighting. Remember you are in the corner of the room, a ceiling fixture in the middle of the ceiling, may not get you the light you need. I added downlights over the top of this one to give great task lighting.
• Try to incorporate a small bookcase as part of the experience, it will be the ideal spot for those favorite books.

The Space at the Top of the Stairs

Almost every house has them, those small awkward spaces lurking around every corner. Most of us can't afford to give up that space and are looking for ways to make it useful. Here is an idea that you might find helpful. This is a space that was on a stair landing of a house that I recently worked on. We thought it would make a great little reading nook, so we added a little window seat, with storage below, and then some handy book storage all around.
Some ways that you can dress up this space:

• Paint the back of the book cases an alternate color
• Add "feet" to the cabinet so it has more of a furniture type feel
• Create a valance over the top, it will unify the whole piece, and that sense of a "ceiling" will make the seat more cozy.
  
  

New Way to Look at Bookcases

There are some things in life that we all take for granted; "what goes up must come down", "water always runs downhill", these are pretty much universal constants. One of the other things that we normally take for granted is that bookshelves are horizontal. This doesn't have to be the case. I have included some images of a project where I used diagonal shelves for displaying books, and it creates a terrific visual drama. Another element that helps, is using color on the inside of the shelves. This is an old technique that can do wonders to jazz up a display of books or collectibles, by creating a vibrant backdrop.

The general message of today's posting is, don't take anything for granted. Just because shelves are usually horizontal, doesn't mean they have to be. I think one of the things that makes great design, is the ability to look at the ordinary, in an extra ordinary way. I would love to here your ideas about things that you have used in a new and fresh way.

Answer Day

As promised, Monday is Answer Day, where I try to offer creative solutions to design dilemmas. If you are facing a design problem, please feel free to post and i will try next Monday to offer you a solution.

Today's query comes from Holly, who has a small landing at the top of her stairway, leading to a second floor, where there is a window seat and a fairly large bookcase. She is looking for ways to keep it tidy and organised and attractive, without going crazy with knick knacks. She has already tried taking off all the dust jackets (btw,,,, great start) but is looking for a way to tame this beast.

Well, Holly, the first thing is get some really cool baskets or boxes to house your magazines, they will never look tidy if left exposed and its also a great way to keep them organised and together. They can be kept perhaps on the bottom two shelves, and their solidity will give some nice balance to the book cases.

The next thing to do is take all the books out of the shelves, and decide which ones you really want to keep, and if there are any you can do without. Once you have your pile of keepers, try to categorise them. As much a fan of the aesthetic as I am, it is crucial that your books are organised in a way that make sense to you, so you can find what you need when you need it. I have almost 1200 books and have so much trouble keeping them in order that I have three copies of John Saladino's book so that I will always be able to find one copy (not a solution I recommend).

Once everything is categorised start putting the books back in the shelves. Start with the category that you use most often and put that at eye height (the most convenient spot) and work to the extreme top and bottom. Always leave lots of space for accessories ans expansion. I like to stack books vertically as well as horizontally to create a nice rhythm.

Now comes time to accessorize! You mention you have some art glass, try creating groupings, instead of one vase here and another over here. Another thing to try is a small lamp in amongst the shelves. I once did a home for a well known film director and she had a great collection of early Californian lamps, we had a huge floor to ceiling bookcase built in her Living Room and scattered the lamps throughout, it takes a bit of work to get the wiring but the effect can be dramatic. Another thing to keep in mind is depth, keep some of the groups of books toward the front of the shelves and others towards the back, its a small thing, but once again creates a pretty visual texture. Lastly think of hanging a painting on the face of the bookcase, it creates a whole new layer that can really bring the look alive.

I am attaching a few images, not all of them are my work, but I hope it gives you some inspiration.

Designing With Books

Collecting books is one of my great passions, so much can be learnt about someone, by a casual glance through their bookcase. Here are some ideas about making your collection a bit more decorative. Enjoy!


1. I love to use books to create warmth and personality in a room. The different topics speak about your interests and values.

2. I like to use books stacked on tables to lift and provide height for lamps or framed pictures, they provide a wonderful opportunity to give height and scale to your collections.

3. A lovely corner in a Living Room is an ideal spot to create your own personal library, if you don’t have a whole room you can dedicate to it. A comfortable chair, a small table and a lamp and you are good to go.

4. When organizing your books, be a little freer, don’t be ties to anything as rigid as the Dewey Decimal System, what about organizing by author, topic or even by color. Just be sure to have some order, there is nothing worse than spending hours trying to find your favorite tome.

5. One of my favorite rooms of all time is a small Library that I turned into a Dining Room for eight. It created the perfect backdrop for intimate dinners surrounded by works of wonder.

6. Paperbacks? We all have them; I like to cover them all in heavyweight paper. Usually I use an off white, but I have been known to use splashes of color, or what about alternating black and white for a stark, rhythmic look, or even choose a different color for each or your favorite authors or subjects (my Dianna Vreeland books are all in red of course).

7. My favorite places to buy books? Nothing completes a trip to New York without a trip to Potterton Books or Rizzolli, San Francisco of course has Stouts, and who can go to Santa Monica without a quick stop by at Hennessy and Ingalls for a few “essentials”? Paris I always stop in at the Librairie Des Antiquaires for an amazing selection of antique books on the decorative arts, and in London Thomas Heneage Art Books, can take me a whole day.

8. The internet is also a great resource for all sorts of books too, some of my favorite sites: Amazon.com (I am addicted to the 1-click option), Alibris.com is a search engine that combs the collection of a huge group of independent booksellers across the nation, and of course Ebay.com (who knew I need a book on how to create my own parade float)?

9. My favorite book is Old World Inspiration for American Architecture published by the Portland Cement Company in 1929. It is a constant reference for historical precedents, a constant inspiration.

10. I love to give and receive books that I or my friends have already read. There is something romantic about poring over pages that others have already gleaned, it like sharing the experience together.