Tips on How to Organize Your Bookshelf Books

What library or study is complete without a bookshelf rich with all kinds of page-turners, textbooks, encyclopedias, and all manner of other books that you and your household love to read? Just seeing a wide assortment of books stacked beautifully onto a set of shelves is enough to motivate just about anyone to pick one up and flip through some pages.

What makes bookshelves so special is that not only are they there to provide readers with hours of entertainment, but they can also function as decor. Colorful book covers and little trinkets that line the bookshelves can be a very effective element of interior design. So, as with any other aspect of your interior design, bookshelves need to have a little thought put into them if they are to function both practically and stylistically. There are different ways to organize your bookshelf that can help out in both these regards. 

Organizing Books On Bookshelves Alphabetically

One of the Most Effective Ways to Organize a Bookshelf

A common practice among book collectors and bibliophiles, as well as everyone else in between, is to organize books alphabetically. It takes quite a bit of work to sift through many books and organize them according to what letter they start with, but it’s a task that rewards you with a bookshelf that is streamlined and anything can be easily found.

By organizing them alphabetically, you will find yourself spending less time looking for books as you can simply look for the title. But aside from this major practical benefit, organizing books alphabetically also keeps the bookshelf looking varied and heterogeneous. While some bibliophiles prefer their books to have some sort of visual consistency, you can make your bookshelves more colorful and visually complex by organizing them alphabetically. Introduce a few knick-knacks and little pieces of decor into the mix and you have yourself a visual orchestra of colors, shapes, and sizes. 

Tidying Up Books Based On Subject and Genre

How Organizing Your Bookshelf Into Subjects and Genres Also Organizes the Room

Another great way to organize books on the shelf is by categorizing them according to subjects. If you have a wide assortment of books, several of which are fiction, others are non-fiction, a few textbooks, encyclopedias, and everything else in between, you should consider dedicating a shelf to each category or genre.

In fact, you can play around with the furniture to make your library or study more practical. If you have a few shelves you’ve dedicated to textbooks, encyclopedias, and non-fiction, then treat this area as your study corner and place a desk near these shelves. On the other hand, if you have a few shelves dedicated to your favorite works of literature that you read for fun, then place a lounge chair with a lamp and a small coffee table. This way you can enjoy recreational reading without having to slump over a desk.

Organizing your books according to subject and genre essentially allows you to dedicate different areas of your room for various kinds of reading activities. With that in mind, you can create a more wholesome library or study where everything is carefully organized, easy to find, and convenient. 

Organizing Books by Color

Create a Rainbow of Colors with Your Bookshelf Organization

For some visual consistency and a gorgeous rainbow pattern of colors, consider a color-sorted bookshelf organization method. While this method of organization may not help you find your books easier, it can most certainly provide visual flair and create a rainbow of color on your bookshelves. 

Aside from visual flair, if you have a knack for remembering the colors of book covers, then finding the book you’re looking for should be fairly easy. Even if the books are not organized according to their genre, subject, or category, you can still easily find what you’re looking for. 

Bookshelf with Basket Storage 

Why Some Homeowners Put Their Books Inside Baskets

A very unique book storage idea makes use of baskets. In fact, there are a lot of decluttering and storage hacks that make use of baskets and books have to do with one of them. The main advantage of having books stored inside baskets is that they become portable. Say you’re looking to study and need several textbooks and encyclopedias, but don’t feel like having to carry them to and from the bookshelf. Fill up the basket with all the ones you need and take them with you. You can even keep these baskets stored on the shelves themselves, so any time you need to quickly take all your study materials, you can simply grab the basket and go.

For a more rustic, Scandi, or general biophilic appeal, you can also try using wicker baskets as pull-out bookshelves. Instead of simply sorting books on the shelves themselves, simply place them inside cute wicker baskets and any time you need a book, simply slide out the baskets themselves. 

Stacking Books

The Surprising Benefits of Stacking Books

Stacking books seems like the complete opposite of organization at first. But having a few extra books on the table is actually a great technique of decluttering bookshelves. Not everyone has those two-story bookshelves in their homes that can hold hundreds of books. If you’re finding yourself running out of room on the shelves, then other horizontal surfaces may be your next best option.

There is actually something charming about stacking books on tables and desks. By spreading out the books throughout the room on various surfaces, you don’t have to overstuff the shelves, making it harder to organize your books and find what you’re looking for. Going back to the idea of dividing the room into various sections, if you have a desk in your library and study, then stack the most commonly used textbooks, encyclopedias, and dictionaries onto them. Use the coffee table of that recreational reading corner to place your favorite works of literature onto, instead of keeping them on the shelves. If you have a few books that you are actively reading at the moment, then placing them back on the shelves is not necessary.

By stacking up these books, you also give your library, study, or even living room visual flair. Stacked books imply that this particular household is fond of reading and studying. So if that is the atmosphere you’re going for, then stacked books will work to your advantage. 

Minimal Bookcase Organization

Minimally Designed Bookshelves Can Be Aesthetically Pleasing

Home libraries and studies are not the only places you can expect to find bookshelves. Not all ways of organizing a bookshelf require you to have shelves fully stocked with tomes and thick encyclopedias. Many homeowners prefer to use books as visual accents and additional flair, even if you’re never going to read them. If you have a bookshelf in your living room, it really doesn’t need too many books.

For living room bookshelves, you just need to have a few books lining the shelves. But the more crucial element, in this case, would be the decor. Little clay pots and jars, souvenirs, and statuettes pair nicely with books of similar color palettes. Even if you have a minimal number of books, you can still make them count by allowing other pieces of decor to complete them visually.