Creative Storage Solutions for the Modern Bibliophile: how to make your home library work for you
If you're lucky enough to be able to devote a whole room to storing your precious books, chances are you're hoping to be able to do those books justice. Custom-built bookshelves and book storage is a great way to do this, and there are a few handy tips and tricks you should know before you begin the process of designing your home library.
Use every available corner, surface and scrap of wall space.
Most rooms aren't completely "standard". One of the reasons custom-made furniture is such a great choice for home libraries is that you can use every available scrap of space to keep your books in; when your carpenter comes over to take the room's measurements, get them to measure every corner angle and the spaces above your doors and windows as well as the expanse of your room's walls. Custom-built bookcases can then be created to take full advantage of all the room available to you.
Give some thought to how best to preserve and protect your books.
Books are of course made of paper and binding, and they don't last forever. Moisture is the worst culprit for damage to a book collection, so you might want to consider having a dehumidifying unit installed—if you're having bookshelves custom-made, you can have a cabinet for one built right in to the arrangement to keep it out of sight. Just make sure the door is suitably slatted so that the unit will still work! Sunlight can also be a problem, particularly if you collect antique books or special bindings; ensure your curtains are sufficient protection against potential fading.
Keep things flexible to make adding to your library more straightforward.
Few book lovers ever reach a point where they decide they have completed their collection, so it's important to have space for your library to expand. The simplest way to do this is to buy a set of markers—one for each letter for fiction and one for each topic for non-fiction—and space them in such a way that you can easily add to your organised collection without needing to move everything around.
Don't forget to include some room to read and work!
You're going to want to be able to read, study and work in this room as well as store your books in it, so make sure you leave room for—at the very least—a small desk with a desk chair and a comfortable armchair situated next to a reading lamp. Again, custom-made is perfect for this; if you choose your desk and chair in advance, your carpenter can sketch out a design that works your bookshelves in around them.
