Styling a Bookcase, Take 2

[Deleted]

Ok so I did some tweaking, added and subtracted a few things.  Is this any better?  I will probably play around with it more but thought I'd stop with this and live with it for a day or two.  I did have a medium sized green vase in the middle on the tall center shelf but it looked too crowded so I removed it.  Does it look like a black hole lives there?  If so I can shop my house for a white platter or something to slip back there. 

Hopefully you can see this photo better than the first one.  

[Deleted]

I like it much better! It's got more texture and depth to it.
Can you change the white vase and the green vase around? It sticks out to me as "not quite right."

[tarheels]

I didn't see the OP. This post has made me realize I have a thing for bookcases having books them This sort of feels like a display at Hobby Lobby - lots of very nice items not really serving a purpose. What do you want from this bookcase? Is it to store things or just for looks or for books?

[Deleted]

Jan 27, 2013 18:33:44 GMT -5 tarheels said:

I didn't see the OP. This post has made me realize I have a thing for bookcases having books them This sort of feels like a display at Hobby Lobby - lots of very nice items not really serving a purpose. What do you want from this bookcase? Is it to store things or just for looks or for books?

LOL at Hobby Lobby. In my previous post I mentioned that the majority of our books are stored on a bookcase elsewhere. I think bookshelves should have books on them too but my hangup in this instance is that this bookcase is in our living room, which is our main living area. I prefer to keep books like the screaming bright yellow "Basketweaving for Dummies" book on a bookcase in another room. I chose the books for this bookcase because I like how the colors tie in with the room. However before I get flamed for choosing books based on color, let me say that these books were already in my collection and I have read every one of them and will likely read them again. Don't think I just bought books merely for the color of the cover. But back to your point about bookshelves actually having books....like I said this is still a work in progress. I may try swapping out some of the decorative items and adding in some more books from my other bookshelf.

I adore books and wish I had a small library that I could dedicate solely to the keeping of all my books!

[Deleted]

dupe

[heygrey]

can you remove the back paneling and let the wall colour show through? or paint the back of the shelves? it looks really dark, but it might just be the lighting in the photo.

[TBM]

Jan 27, 2013 18:24:37 GMT -5 @justdairy said:

I like it much better! It's got more texture and depth to it.
Can you change the white vase and the green vase around? It sticks out to me as "not quite right."

It is better.   I think the shelf Dairy is talking about looks off because of the two stacks of books, (similar height), each with a vase perched on top.  If you are going to stack books and use to help with levels, only use one stack on the shelf.

I think you could vary heights a bit more overall.

[Deleted]

Jan 27, 2013 18:48:31 GMT -5 heygrey said:

can you remove the back paneling and let the wall colour show through? or paint the back of the shelves? it looks really dark, but it might just be the lighting in the photo.

Yes, I am actually considering this. I might either paint it or cover a posterboard or piece of MDF cut to size with pretty paper (one of the few times I would be ok w/wallpaper). I am seriously considering doing this as I am fully aware of how dark it looks. 

[tarheels]

Oh, please! lol The books on my big e-center are absolutely the pretty ones (hot) DH's sci-fi paperbacks are hidden in Rubbermaid tubs in the storage unit, never to see the light of day lol. I gave all my romance paperbacks to the library, and I don't buy them anymore (library instead) because they're not something I want on display and I have nowhere to secretly store the ~100 of them I read a year.

I once got into a discussion with someone who insisted that I had bought all my books just for decoration. He absolutely refused to believe that I've actually read "New Complete Home Landscaping," "Meditations on Design," "Interior Transformations," etc, etc. Just because my books have pretty covers does not mean I haven't read them

The arrangement does look pretty. I might pull a few items off an angle and square them up some.

[Deleted]

Jan 27, 2013 18:57:56 GMT -5 tarheels said:

Oh, please! lol The books on my big e-center are absolutely the pretty ones (hot) DH's sci-fi paperbacks are hidden in Rubbermaid tubs in the storage unit, never to see the light of day lol. I gave all my romance paperbacks to the library, and I don't buy them anymore (library instead) because they're not something I want on display and I have nowhere to secretly store the ~100 of them I read a year.

I once got into a discussion with someone who insisted that I had bought all my books just for decoration. He absolutely refused to believe that I've actually read "New Complete Home Landscaping," "Meditations on Design," "Interior Transformations," etc, etc. Just because my books have pretty covers does not mean I haven't read them

The arrangement does look pretty. I might pull a few items off an angle and square them up some.

LOL.  Ok good.  I did follow the suggestion for that middle shelf and put all the books in one stack instead of two and swapped the shorter white vase/planter with the gold vase (I think it reads green in the photo but it's actually gold).  I may post an updated photo later.

Thanks for all the suggestions ladies.  I think it looks a lot better than it did.  Funny story: I asked DH what he thought of it and he said he liked it.  Knowing how unobservant he is in general I pointed to one of the vases and asked if he remembered where it was previously. He looked at me and said "somewhere else"!  Hahaha.  :Y:

[beanieweanie]

I didn't see OP but I would probably add more books vertically on the shelves with the vases and straighten the ones you already have there.