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hello my friends, happy wednesday!
If you’ve visited me throughout the years you may have picked up on the fact that I love libraries. Weather public, university or home libraries, they all hold equal interest for me. [HERE, HERE, and HERE] I love books and the warmth they give to a room.
This post was inspired by a post in late spring by my friend, Vanessa, of Reviving Charm. She shared information of a London based company known as Ultimate Library. They will curate and assemble an entire library for you, whether it be a residential or commercial project. To read more about how this works and some of the locations where they have done this service visit HERE.
Today I’d like to talk about the role of books as an accessory. I realize that anytime a book is placed in a stack on a coffee table it could be considered an adornment, as well as something to read, but it seems to me books have advanced to a more prominent place in a room today.
Beribboned antique books are used alongside an assortment of other tabletop antiques.
These beauties make such a statement in this bookcase. Wouldn’t you love to open one {carefully} and read it, look for the date?
This desk vignette is beautiful and the books definitely play a role.
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I’ve always loved a library table. Wish I had room for one. This book display hits all of my hot buttons. Art work, a vintage pocket watch, the tray and a scented candle, and the still life effect of it all by adding the bowl of apples, perfection.
I’m certain you’ve seen this trend in displaying books. I guess you either hate it or love it. I confess it appeals to me and I’ve done a version of it in my own bookcase with my design books. Where do you stand on the color coordinated books topic?
…and what about removing the jackets. Again, I’m sure there are those that feel it is sacrilege and others, like me, that actually like the look of the books better without their jackets than with!
I really like the way we all use books to elevate items such as this orchid and the smaller accessory on the chest when decorating.
Blue and white beauty with books and other wonderful items of interest.
I also like color coordinated books in a vignette. Intentionally placing a stack of green books with the blue, white and green set-up just makes it all the prettier in my view.
The collection of magnifying glasses, along with the leather books is divine!
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This space has a library feel to it. The vintage prints, marble bust and books!
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I love this narrow opening in such a formal setting, filled to the top with vintage books!
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Tell me, do you decorate with books?
♥ Karen
Garden, Home & Party 
Reviving Charm said:
Well hello, dear friend! What a wonderful way to wake up this morning and read your post about books and so lovely to mention my post. That’s so very sweet and kind of you. Thank you!
I knew we had a lot in common! Like you, I’m a book lover and my appreciation for books continues to grow. They are the best and easiest decorating accessory. I think I have a collection of books displayed in almost every room of the house! Lol. My favorite trick is using them to elevate other objects. And in our living room they take center stage as a decorating accessory. A post about that is in the works. Stay tuned!
About dust jackets…I do prefer the look without but often tend to leave them on. However I did take the dust jacket off my copy of Osa Johnson’s zebra print bound “I married adventure” and have carefully stored it away. Some books are just better without them.
Have a great rest if the week. And again, thanks for the shout out! -Vanessa.
Karen B. said:
Good morning, I was so taken with the post your shared about the book curator company. I would love to work for them, can you imagine how challenging and enjoyable the assignments would be?! I will look forward to reading your upcoming post on books. I too save the dust jackets for the books that I’m currently displaying without their jackets. Sometimes the books are better without them when they sport an actual cover that is different. Thanks for stopping by, V. xo, Karen
On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 4:22 AM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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Charity said:
I think those of us that truly love books end up “decorating” with them by default. They are such an essential part of my life I can’t imagine a home without them! I do tend to like them without the jackets, but it really depends on the book. For me good design starts with function, so I arrange my books by topic not color. Beautiful images, thanks for sharing!
Karen B. said:
Charity, I find some books to be prettier without the jacket but I always keep the jacket. I agree, I love books and can’t imagine it feeling like ‘home’ without them. Thanks for stopping by. Karen
On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 7:12 AM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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After Orange County said:
I too am a lover of books. When we built our home a primary consideration was to have a place to put our large collection. Since a home library wasn’t possible we opted for what we call a “Library Loft” and it’s a favorite feature in our home. It is perched above my kitchen/great room at the top of an open staircase and really makes a statement. I was worried when electronic books came along that publishers would stop printing books, but alas, they still seem to be loved by many and hopefully will always be around. Even if you don’t like to read, books are a beautiful and inexpensive way to decorate.
Karen B. said:
Celia, I was a little worried myself with the electronic book trend. I do love my Audible books for multi-tasking around the house and in the garden. Still, there is nothing like sitting down with a great book and reading while sipping tea. A library loft sounds fabulous by itself. Maybe you can post about that some time. 🙂 Karen
On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 7:45 AM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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leslie carney said:
Hi Karen, I am trying to get my husband to start on the shelving on either side of our two fireplaces (great room and FR) so I will have a way to display things. I’m not a fan of too many “things” but just the right amount is perfect and I like to color coordinate;) Books are a must and mine are currently stacked on the floor until we get the shelving in place. The designer/antique style books are really pretty and I like the gray stacks on my white mantle. The nice ones are pricey .. so I’ve held off purchasing them until I see what my space looks like when the shelves are in. Fun post and makes me excited for fall:)
Karen B. said:
Leslie, I will certainly look forward to you sharing the bookshelf install once it happens. I do think books are essential gear for the cooler months. As you well know, Southern California summers are all about being outdoors. I get around this with my Audible books…it allows for multi tasking. 🙂 Thanks so much for stopping by, it’s always so nice chatting with you! 🙂 xo, Karen
On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 8:10 AM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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Jayne on Weed Street said:
Hi Karen, I parted with so many books when we moved, but not the treasured books or the antique books. One favorite is a family heirloom – an illustrated history of China from 1800’s which has pride of place on our center hall table. I also use old leather bound and gold tooled books that are of interesting subjects in the living room. My cook books – favorites – are used to adorn our Welsh dresser – stacked in the dog kennel center! And of course on the family room coffee table, I have favorite art books and bird books! Love this post!
Karen B. said:
Jayne, What a treasure to have. I think that is the fun of being a book lover, the family tomes and finds are so special. Cookbooks, I forgot to even mention those essential resources! Thanks for stopping by. Karen
On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 8:17 AM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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Chronica Domus said:
Hello Karen,
I too love books but to use them as decorating accessories (as in the torn books with ribbons), well, I ain’t never going there!
I do agree with you that many books look better without the jackets.
Have you ever tried to color coordinate gardening books? No need. They are mostly green.
Karen B. said:
Do you think that one image of the books that looked old was done on purpose, not just from age? I’m with you, I wouldn’t tear a book but I assumed those were very old books. Yes, I have noticed garden books are typically green. My book on Highgrove is blue, but otherwise most of my garden books are green or white with green. Karen
On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 10:54 AM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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D'Arcy H said:
Well, we’re two writers, so you KNOW we have books. I even wrote about organizing them by the Dewey decimal system when we decorated our spare room, which we refer to as the library (although it’s more like Eric’s office). The library shelves are now full to overflowing. Books spill all over everything at our house–the living room, the dining room table, even the bathroom. I don’t even try to decorate with them, they are just there because there are too many to corral. As for the color coordinated look, it’s not for me. I like to be able to find my books. Color looks great, but doesn’t function well. I can’t imagine a house without books … lots and lots of books! 🙂
–D’Arcy
Karen B. said:
I do think the whole color coordination of book spines is a trend, but I confess, I’ve seen it used to good effect. I even laughed at one blogger who had a smallish book case the displayed only shades of blue and she said that when asked about whether she only buys blue books she tongue in cheek answered “why, yes!” 🙂 The Dewey decimal system, huh? You are organized! Karen
On Wed, Sep 14, 2016 at 9:53 PM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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administrator said:
The last one looks very flamboyant.
Dawn said:
Celebrating book lovers with you today, Karen! From where I am sitting, I can see a stack of tea books with a small lamp on top, a stack of nature books with a plant on top, and a small stack of three vintage garden books holding an antique pitcher filled with hydrangeas, on the dining room table. On our bookshelves, our books are usually grouped by category ~ perennials, herbs, Christmas books, Susan Branch books,… Since our reading tastes are quite different, we alternate shelves… a shelf for me, the next shelf for my husband, and so on. 🙂 We love to keep our travel books on shelves in our guest room, where visitors can enjoy them, along with special mementos from our trips. I always have a great stack of library books here, too! It’s always such fun to peek at the book titles on display while visiting a friend’s home. What fun to discover books that we both love! Such a great post, Karen! ♡
Karen B. said:
Dawn, What a vivid picture you create with your words. I could visualize each room with it’s inviting details. Thank you so much for sharing. Have a lovely weekend, my friend. Karen
On Thu, Sep 15, 2016 at 7:50 PM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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Vicki said:
I love books and sort them mostly by category, but I confess they also have to look pretty together, or they get booted to closed door storage. I get sort of a geeky thrill when removing the dust jacket reveals an attractive book spine. White with gold lettering is always a winner. Now you’ve got me re-thinking my shelves. That narrow space with the old books looks so neat!
Karen B. said:
Vicki, I agree, there is something exciting about unveiling a book whose jacket cover hides the better cover. I also enjoy visiting our “Friends of the Library” store in search of that perfect little book that works not only as an accessory but also is a title the fits with my overall interests. Enjoy the weekend, we’re warming up but then cooling again. Autumn is trying to arrive! xo, Karen
On Thu, Sep 15, 2016 at 8:11 PM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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Linda Coble said:
Karen,
This post brought back so many memories of treasured books I’ve accumulated over my lifetime. I still have all the storybooks that Ian was given as a child. I’m holding onto them until he has a child of his own. I also have several different collections of art books, mysteries, and cookbooks. When I first moved away from home, I joined a book-of-the-month club called International Collector’s Library which enabled me to get a beautifully bound book of one of the great classics every month. I still enjoy looking all the well-thumbed copies.
Thanks for a lovely trip down memory lane.
Karen B. said:
Linda, I know as a fellow book lover, no house would be a home for me without my books. 🙂 xo, Karen
On Fri, Sep 16, 2016 at 1:04 PM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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Loi Thai Tone on Tone said:
Such a pretty post! And yes, I love decorating with (certain) books. Right now as we transition from summer to fall, I like to bring out my autumnal decor books for inspiration and reference. And having the books on the coffee or console table make them easier to grab. Plus they are pretty to look at 🙂
xo
Karen B. said:
Loi, That’s the fun with books, right? I select the books that suit the season too. I’m eager to see what you and Tom are up to with the new home. 🙂 Thanks, as always, for stopping by. xo, Karen
On Sat, Sep 17, 2016 at 11:54 AM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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Gretchen said:
Like many of your followers, I like to organize my books by subject. When we downsized I had to get rid of many of our books. I kept all my favorites, of course, since they’re like old friends to me. I try to keep the dust jackets on them, but after reading what a number of people said about uncovering some beautiful spines, i need to take a look under those jackets!
Karen B. said:
Hi Gretchen, I’m sure there are people that consider it sacrilege to remove the dust jacket, but I love the cloth binding in many cases over the jackets. I guess if you thought you might sell the book someday, it would be important to carefully store the jacket, but I believe the favorites will travel around with me so I have gotten rid of them. Karen
On Wed, Sep 21, 2016 at 9:12 PM, Garden, Home & Party wrote:
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