If you’re a book or magazine lover, you understand the struggle of shuffling books from one place to another, trying to make room for anything else.
Of course, you wouldn’t dare get rid of them, but finding a suitable way to store them can be hard.
When corners, bookshelves, and tables are full, where else can you put your books?
This list of unique ways to store books and magazines will help you keep your love of reading material under control. (Or at the very least, something resembling control.)
You’ll enjoy having an organized storing area with expertly-displayed tomes!
1. Rolling Cart
Rolling carts are extremely versatile pieces. When you add magazine boxes to the mix, you have the perfect mobile storage area for your books and catalogs.
This ability to bring it with you wherever you like to read makes a very functional way to store your reading material.
These rolling carts are usually quite small, making them easy to put away when you don’t want it — creating more space in your living area.
2. Floor-to-Ceiling Shelving
When you have so many books, you know, without a doubt, that just one shelf isn’t going to cut it. Your best bet is to pick an area and fill it with shelves from floor to ceiling.
One common area that people choose to do this with is on a wall with the tv mounted in the middle. Entertainment centers are becoming less common. So this alternative is not only more modern but also helps to keep your home looking quite intellectual.
You can also add floor-to-ceiling shelves framing a window. If you don’t want to frame the window completely, you can always add shelves just above or just below the window.
You can have even more fun with this if you are good at building and add a bench for a window seat reading nook with space for books inside or underneath.
3. Closet Library
A sparsely-used closet is a perfect place to call a library. To transform this small room into a book storage area, all you need to do is install shelves all over the closet walls, from top to bottom.
If this closet is big enough, you can add a chair and light for a private reading nook.
See?
Whimsical spaces aren’t just for the rich and eccentric!
4. Cable Spool
Finding new ways to use often discarded items is a great way to create a unique space in your home. Using a cable spool to store books around the base is a perfect example of such a venture.
The weathered wood of old cable spools will add a certain rugged charm to your home.
You can modify the cable spool to be able to turn. That way, you can find the book you want without walking around the spool. Accomplish this by adding a base with a rod that comes up in the middle of the spool.
You can also design this spool into a more elegant table by adding a mosaic top, cover it with round glass, or paint it. You can even use mini spools as stools to sit on.
5. Armoire Arrangement
If you want to find a way to store your books that keeps the clutter hidden, the answer is to buy an old armoire.
You can put your books on the inside, but it opens up for even more storage in the doors.
Often, you can find these old armoires for cheap at thrift stores, and with a little sanding and painting, you can make them look brand new.
6. Staircase Bookshelves
There are two ways that you can create a staircase bookshelf.
One is to build a series of floating shelves on the wall arranged to appear like a set of stairs. Add a couple of bookends, and you’ve got a unique way to organize your books and magazines on the wall.
On the floor, you can build a set of cubes. Then arrange them into the shape of a stairwell by stacking them on top of one another.
7. Floating Shelves
There are so many different ways to make floating shelves into storage for books and magazines.
You can put wire baskets on their side and attach them to hooks. These allow you to see through the wires and find the magazine you want to read.
You can install floating shelves in a vertical layer to mimic a bookshelf’s look without taking up floor space.
A metal U-shaped floating shelf will hold your books and magazines without the need for bookends and add an industrial style to your home.
One very cool way to use floating shelves for books is to conceal the shelf under a novel. Making it look like your books are floating in thin air. Here’s a DIY video to show you how!
8. Pull Out Cache
If you would prefer to keep your books somewhere out of the way but still within easy reach, you can store them in a pull-out cache. This cache can roll under either the bed or the couch.
You can add rollers to the bottom to make them easier to get them out and back under.
9. Books as Furniture
If you don’t have any room to add shelves, furniture, or any other storage item — use your books as furniture.
To do this, arrange your books in your desired shape, then cover with a board or glass to make it a table.
You can shape them into a circular, rectangle, or even a square table base.
Conclusion
Hopefully, you’ve found one of these ways the right choice for your books and magazines, or at least inspired you in a similar fashion.
In this digital world, books and magazines are beginning to become outdated.
But, honestly, books and magazines will forever be classic. How you decide to store them can make them even more stylish!
From Greenville, NC and East Carolina University Alum. Cat mom of two. Been with The Grove since July 2019. Fell in love with Auburn and the SEC life!
