Book Organization

Book organization is imperative to an orderly home or office. Even with today's paperless technologies and the vast effort to save our planet, books are still more popular than ever and continue to be one of the major sources of clutter.

The organizing process and suggested products outlined below will help you get started.

Utilize the general organizing procedure of purge, sort and store, and apply it when organizing books.


Purge:

• Start by going through your book collection ONE book at a time. Pick up each book and decide if it is worth keeping. In order to accomplish this, ask yourself appropriate questions (i.e. Is this book in readable condition? Am I going to read it again? Is it something I will reference in the future? Is it outdated?)

• Take out the trash and put the donations in your car. Also, contain all books for distribution in a bag or box and put them in a place where you will see them and remember to give them out (i.e. by the back door). This hinders the possibility of undoing your hard book organization work.

• Now that all unnecessary books are gone, it's time to focus on what's left. Divide the books into categories that make sense to you, so that relocating specific titles later is effortless.

• For example, separate them by type of book and then alphabetize them by author. With this system, you would find "Harry Potter" in fiction with the other authors that have a last name starting with an "R".


Store:

• Given the nature of books (rereadable, often referenced and so on), they are not always easy to pare down and this can obstruct the path to book organization...

• If you have a lot of books and a considerable amount of space for multiple bookshelves, then utilize them for your categorized collection.

• If you are not in a spacious situation, and you find yourself with a large collection even after you've purged, it's time to adapt and get creative.

--> BOOKS AS ART: Rather than trying to stuff more books into the cabinet or adding more pieces of literature to the already-bowing shelf, let's utilize the artistic value of these items. Decide which books you would like to exhibit (most read, often referenced, complementary cover colors, same size, etc). Mount a modern bookshelf to the wall and occupy it with the chosen items. Voila! Art and book organization all in one.

--> BOOKS AS FURNITURE: Instead of shoving more books underneath or into the coffee table, let's create another usable piece of furniture. Stack some sturdy books to produce the stem of a table, and place a larger book (or a piece of glass) on top of the stack to serve as the surface. Put a lamp and coasters on it to complete the look. Presto! Aesthetics and functionality all in one.

--> BOOKS ALL AROUND: Books can be overwhelming if they are all in one area of your home. Divide them up by topic, and distribute them to appropriate areas around the house. For instance, utilize a cabinet in the kitchen (cookbooks), an area near the bathtub (novels), a shelf in the office (reference books), the mantel by the fireplace (fiction), and/or the space under the coffee table (photographic books). Tada! Alleviation and practicality all in one.


The Products

The following products can help you on your journey to book organization. Check them out!

Ikea Lack Wall Shelf
Function meets style with this funky wall shelf from Ikea. Mounted on the wall with concealed hardware, it becomes part of the decor. Buy a few of them and make a wall design of your own!

Spine Book Tower - a book organization favorite!
Creative, practical and affordable! This awesome vertical product successfully saves space, holds a lot of books, and enhances your interior design.


stay tuned for more!