the case of the bookcase

topic number six: bookcases, in the eye of the beholder

With each move our family has made over the years, there comes a moment in time when our bookcase is ready to be set up. This is the time when my husband heads off to the office immediately and my daughter takes a trip...abroad. No, not because they do not want to help. It is because they know better. Bookcase organization in our house is a very critical period of time. My approach to this project is similar to that of an artist with a large blank canvas: passion, vision and a plan. Some artists require silence and space to work...can you guess who?

Over the years, studying and working with cases, I find that bookcase balance (aka composition) is always at issue. Larger books should be positioned on the lower shelves, smaller books above just as a landscape artist would paint wooded hillsides below blue skies, not above. If this concept makes no sense to you, honey, you may want to sit this one out.

I usually separate books by size first and then group them by theme. You will drive yourself crazy trying to alphabetize everything perfectly first. Trust me. Start with themes--gardening, travel, fiction, non-fiction, kite-flying, etc. Once you have themes grouped, you may then lightly organize alphabetically.

After groups of books are allotted to the various shelves, work one shelf at a time. A painting within a painting if you will. With each predetermined group, balance the shelf according to size and color. Here one must think out of the box and be willing to sacrifice a bright orange dust jacket or two for the overall good. But then again, that Matisse red jacket may be the needed missing link!

Restoration Hardware catalogues depicting case books covered with identical antique white jackets are so appealing. And, although many think I have a form over function kind of spirit, I too, have my limits. Especially, when it comes to my collection of art books. I like to see them and know exactly where they are.

Anyway, once each shelf is completed, step back and make a few adjustments where needed. I suggest "tweaking" a few shelves with the addition of a small group of thoughtfully selected objects. By checking visual balance from top to bottom and side to side, finding rhythms or sequences in book colors and/or top lines, placement becomes easier to determine. Think of the objects as accents, adding not distracting from what you have already created.

So, is your bookcase a bit off or uncomfortable to look at? Just let the artist within you reach out with books as palette paint and the case as canvas!

"mad props"

My mother's bookshelves are truly a work of art--museum worthy--so much so that I often feel bad amending them. Every time I get a new book, I kind of dread finding it a place on the shelf because it would be changing a Perri Original. Subsequently, books end up collecting on my bedside table along with a growing fear of what to do once the stack gets too high (three ends up being the limit at which my mother asks me to clean my room).

Currently, I am struggling to order my bookshelves at college. This year, I have copious shelving space which is unusual for a lowly sophomore. My bookshelves are vibrant and colorful, maybe a little too visually stimulating, but in my defense I have more to deal with than books. Some items include a stereo, oddly sized dishes, Oreos, an egg timer, three Frisbees, a stapler, and other various school supplies. This is a functional bookshelf, with granola bars in an arm's reach while the dictionary hangs out quietly on the top shelf.

I love it when my mother organizes my bookshelves, or anything really. I do admit sometimes we clash over functionality vs. aesthetic value. After a few days or so my tidiness tends to wane; hence, practicality is a priority when it comes to long term organization. As silly as it sounds, as I get older, I am awed by my growing appreciation for lack of clutter which once was a comfort (I kept EVERYTHING). Because of this character trait, I give my mom "Mad Props," as my generation would say, in that she always makes sense out of the messes I make.