When books take over the decor

Reading has never been more popular than nowadays, when one’s home has become a refuge in which to escape through books. But books that pile up and you don’t know where to put away quickly harm the harmony of a room — and even an entire house. Tips and advice for showcasing your books.

Laila Maalouf
The Press

Often the mess starts with the books; Vanessa Sicotte knows this from experience. One of the most frequent requests that the designer and decorating expert, who is also the creator of the blog Damask & Dentelle, receives comes from avid readers who are looking for effective ways to display their books with brilliance, as their collection grows. .

“Having books in a house is like expressing a certain form of openness, curiosity, humility in relation to what we don’t know, but also, in the case of novels, a certain form of escape – and right now, we know we need to escape! “, says the one who describes herself as a” ferocious reader “.

At home, books are everywhere. On tables, on top of furniture… Or even as a bedside table, which is built with a pile of large bricks with colored covers.

In typical Montreal apartments where a long corridor crosses the space from one side to the other, she always recommends that her clients install a row of shelves filled with books — high enough, of course, so that no one knocks on each other. the head. “I think it’s such a great way to optimize the space and give a bit of character to this place which is otherwise just a place of passage”, says Vanessa Sicotte.

Multiply the reading places

At Tania Trudel too, books have invaded all the rooms. In her favorite place to read, the upcycling specialist, stylist and founder of Aube Design organized books of all genres by color, after finding the idea on Pinterest. But this way of doing things was not unanimously accepted right away… “My husband likes it less, but he’s gotten used to it. He is very Cartesian, so by theme or by author, it would be more logical for him, ”she confides. He also has another reading corner in the living room where he likes to sit while sipping a drink, and where there are a number of books – especially on Scotch – near his bottles.

Their novels will soon take up residence in the new library designed by a cabinetmaker in a Mid-Century style, more refined and classic, and which will be installed in the bedroom, where they read in the evening.

Despite this propensity to disperse books in all rooms, the trend is still for bookcases that occupy an entire wall in the living room. And sometimes even the space above the door frame, says Maxime Lebeuf, founder of L’Atelier des Compagnons, who regularly works on this kind of custom project, which is always in high demand. “The idea is to fill the existing space,” he says, but you still need to have walls that can support all the weight that will weigh on the shelves.

Vanessa Sicotte’s spouse has himself built in his spare time (and even if it’s not his job at all) a small corner wall bookcase, whose side and top of the shelves have been rounded to come match the style of the house, which dates back to 1920. And on the shelves, there are both books and small objects of all kinds.

“That’s why we always say to arrange the books vertically and horizontally. We are really going to work with the volumes to give ourselves a little bit of variety”, explains the designer.

His trick to know if the visual effect is successful? Take a photo with your phone and watch the result in two dimensions, which will allow you to have a completely different perspective.

And the children’s rooms?

Tania Trudel admits having “a little lost control” in the rooms of her elders, who are all three great readers. But that of the youngest, Valois, 4 years old, has a cozy and carefully thought out reading corner. The concept is simple: a mattress on the floor with cushions, a well-filled magazine rack on the floor and small shelves on two levels, at an easily accessible height to allow him to store his books face to face.

Vanessa Sicotte also suggests housing a few books in a small wooden crate with wheels — like those used for toy storage. They will be able to easily follow him to the place where he will want to read!