This week we continue with our book lover series of posts. A couple of weeks back we suggested a few Perfect Spots For Your Home Library. Once you’ve selected your spot (I hope you’ve done that by now!) the first thing we would need there would be a place to keep your books. So today we have some beautiful bookshelf design ideas for you. Read on and you’ll have found one just right for you in no time!

9 Beautiful Bookshelf Design Ideas

Because there is a whole lot of beauty in simplicity, we’ll start with simplest of all ideas.

(1) Straight Shelves

Yup… simple straight shelves for the win. After all, all you really need to keep a book is a simple flat piece of wood or glass to keep it on.

Source

So whether you run them from end to end, or break them up into smaller sections, a bookshelf with straight shelves will always look elegant.

Source

You can, of course, always add a little twist to the straight shelves.

Source

Dress up the straight shelves with a simple arch for a classical touch.

Source

Mix up your materials and place the shelves unevenly to add some interest.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

Or stagger the straight shelves to make a stunning pattern.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

(2) Angle Your Shelves

If you prefer a hint of the unexpected, place the bookshelves at a bit of an angle and see what a difference it makes.

Source

A simple, blend-in-the-wall kind of bookcase can become the focal point of the room.

Source

This angling of the bookshelves will look stunning in a smaller, freestanding book case too…

Source

… as can be seen in these two striking examples.

Source

Or you could angle your bookshelves fully and make a stunning statement like the one below.

Source

Clean lines, sloping one way and the other, give you an infinite number of exciting options.

Source

(3) Geometric Shapes

Third on our list of beautiful bookshelf design ideas is to use geometric shapes. Now that we’ve realised that the shelves can be arranged in horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines to make any shape we want, let’s do just that.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

Love how the angling of one square in this otherwise straight bookshelf makes such a difference to the simple design.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

Play around with your lines to lay your bookshelves in patterns of various geometric shapes.

Source

You can even have a circular bookcase.

Source

(4) Any Shape At All!

In fact, it doesn’t have to be a regular geometric shape. You can use your bookshelves like lines in a piece of art and place them any way you want. Curves will add elegance to your shapes.

Source

These sweeping curves going asymmetrically in one direction make quite a bold statement.

Source

These pretty bookshelves are beautifully inspired by Moroccan design.

Source

Use your imagination to place straightforward square boxes to make a pretty flower along the wall.

Source

Or split it the flower around a corner to look just as eye catching.

Source

Use your bookshelves as a large piece of art that runs across your entire wall in any pattern you might desire.

Source

And while we’re selecting some exciting shapes for our bookshelves, remember that you can’t go wrong with organic forms.

Source 

(5) Frames

‘Frame’ your bookshelves to make them stand out like any piece of art.

Source

You can do this both ways. If you’re using old frames, make boxes according to their size and place the frame on them. Or make your bookshelf boxes and then get them framed.

Source

You could also take an entire, larger bookshelf and get the whole thing framed to make it look like a piece of art.

Source

I actually love the idea of using boxes side by side even without the frames on them… like a gallery wall of bookshelves!

Source

(6) Tree of Life

A shape I found repeatedly during my research for this post was the tree of life.

Source

Along with immortality and strength it is also a represents peace and enlightenment.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

I think that symbolism would give just the right vibes to a place of reading and learning.

Source

What I love most about these bookshelves is, that being inspired by nature, the tree need not have any fixed shape. You can mould and shape it as per your convenience to fit in the space required.

Source

(7) Closed Bookcases

As a designer I hear very often from clients that they want their display shelves and bookcases to be closed because of all the daily city dust. If you feel the same way, then a closed bookcase is a great idea for you too.

Plain glass shutters will always look refined.

Source

Or you could use straight lines to make a basic design on the shutters.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

Or you could place a classic book case like this vintage piece I was lucky to find.

(8) Light It Up!

Whatever type of bookshelf you select from the options above, putting some lights in will definitely glam it up.

Source

You can use LED strips either at the bottom of every shelf or the top of each one.

Source

You can also use small spotlights that fit into the shelf above.

Source

Whether white, coloured or finished in wood, whether light or dark, lighting up the shelf will look great every time.

Source

(9) Bookshelves for Kids

And finally we realised we can’t forget the little kids in our list of bookshelf design ideas. You can, of course, use all the above ideas for kids too. Add a little bit of colour and a regular bookshelf becomes one especially for kids.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

A tree of life for kids can be so much more exciting and colourful.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

The simplest way to do it for kids is to use a decal on the wall and then place straight shelves along the branches.

Source

And monogram bookshelves is a great way to personalise your little one’s room.

Source (I could only trace this pic to Pinterest. Any help to credit the rightful owner will be welcome)

But for especially little kids, I would suggest this. We select a book by reading the name on the binding. Our little toddlers though, can’t read yet. They pick a book by looking at the pic on the cover. And so it makes sense to lay out books for them with the front cover showing.

A narrow shelf with a little lip at the edge to prevent the books from slipping out should do the trick.

Source

If you can add a rod or string a little higher up it will keep the books safer still.

Source

And isn’t this the best age to gift our kids the joy the of reading?

.

I think we’ve covered almost all types of bookshelf design ideas for just about everyone in our post here. I am sure you’ve found something you would love to use yourself. Let me know which one is your favourite.

And stay tuned because next, we’ll round up our book lovers post series with ideas on how to make a cosy reading nook.

Until then,