How to Use Books in Decor

Are your books becoming a strain on your storage space? They don't have to be. Make books functional as well as decorative. Here are some ways to use them creatively.

Things You'll Need

• Glass Blocks
• Stones
• Bookcases
• Bookends
• Collectibles
• Sand

Instructions

1. Stack coffee-table-type books to end-table height. Set a small glass top, round or rectangular, on the stack to make a perch for a lamp, beverages or whatever. Set your new table beside an easy chair.

2. Make two stacks of coffee-table-type books side by side and place a long rectangular piece of glass over the stacks. Voilà! A coffee table.

3. Create vignettes with books by propping up small ones on the back of a piano or on a ledge in the hall; standing up bigger ones at the back of a deep desk or chest of drawers (a lamp, framed photos and other items can sit in front of the books); or by putting them high up on the tops of kitchen cabinetry and armoires.

4. Let the books play a role in a special centerpiece, mantel decor or tablescape. At Easter, for instance, you could display a basket of colored eggs, a stuffed bunny and a Peter Rabbit storybook.

5. Give bookcases a tidy look so they become a plus in decor. Arranging the books by color and incorporating attractive collectibles into bookshelf displays can turn the shelving into a design statement, rather than a decorating distraction.

6. Be creative in finding places for bookcases, especially when you have more books than space. Small bookshelves can often be squeezed into an entryway, hall or stairway landing, and a big one works great as a room divider.

Tips & Warnings

• If your books look sloppy, level the spines at the front of the bookcases.

• Don't have the books tilting at an angle. Instead, stand most of them up straight. You can use a few lying horizontally as bookends.

• Need some inexpensive but good-looking bookends? Glass block - sold at many home centers - is a lovely option, or use sand or pebbles to give weight to a hollow, but sturdy, opaque collectible.