With school back in session the eternal struggle with keeping your books in order and yet accessible resumes. The stack of board-brick-board design is always an option, but there are other options too. Keep in mind that you'll be attending classes, doing homework (hopefully), and want to have a bit of a social life as well -- so best to keep the amount of work spent on setting up the book storage to a minimum.
Starting with the stack option, here's an example posted by The Crazy Craft Lady (the shelves are in the back, Pippa's in front). Best not to make the shelves more that 4 tiers high for safety's sake.
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Bookends are an alternative to shelves and there are lots of do-it-yourself projects for bookends online, but many of them look like they would be more annoying than functional. Steve Ramsey at Woodworking for Mere Mortals offers instructions for bookends that really work. They also look like a lot of work to make.
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With all this in mind, I'm opting for modular storage that can be stacked on the floor or on a desk or table top.
By far the simplest, most elegant design is Miso's X-shelf, found at Inhabitat. As far as I can tell this shelf is not offered for retail sale, so you'll have to build it. Looks pretty simple though -- a number of boards with slots in the middle and the short edges mitered. You might want to connect each X in some way; possibly with brass flat braces and brass screws. Take a look:
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A spice rack from Ikea might work for a few oft-used books, but it will have to be hung on the wall and there is likely a weight limit. Still, it's only $3.99 (shipping to San Francisco is $11.00); at Amazon the item costs $13.31.
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My final suggestion is modular storage cubes/systems. To me iCube is the most interesting. Amazon carries a fair selection of the brand, but I'm not seeing plain cubes without a center divider except in the four-cube kit for $76.57 (black). Individual cubes (with center shelves) average $15-16).
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Remember to put the heavier stuff toward the bottom of the stack.
-- Marge
Starting with the stack option, here's an example posted by The Crazy Craft Lady (the shelves are in the back, Pippa's in front). Best not to make the shelves more that 4 tiers high for safety's sake.
***
 |
| Stacked shelves, TheCrazyCraftLady.com |
Bookends are an alternative to shelves and there are lots of do-it-yourself projects for bookends online, but many of them look like they would be more annoying than functional. Steve Ramsey at Woodworking for Mere Mortals offers instructions for bookends that really work. They also look like a lot of work to make.
***
 |
| Bookends that really work, WoodworkingForMereMortals.com |
With all this in mind, I'm opting for modular storage that can be stacked on the floor or on a desk or table top.
By far the simplest, most elegant design is Miso's X-shelf, found at Inhabitat. As far as I can tell this shelf is not offered for retail sale, so you'll have to build it. Looks pretty simple though -- a number of boards with slots in the middle and the short edges mitered. You might want to connect each X in some way; possibly with brass flat braces and brass screws. Take a look:
***
 |
| Miso X-shelf, Inhabitat.com |
A spice rack from Ikea might work for a few oft-used books, but it will have to be hung on the wall and there is likely a weight limit. Still, it's only $3.99 (shipping to San Francisco is $11.00); at Amazon the item costs $13.31.
***
 |
| Ikea Spice Rack, Ikea.com |
My final suggestion is modular storage cubes/systems. To me iCube is the most interesting. Amazon carries a fair selection of the brand, but I'm not seeing plain cubes without a center divider except in the four-cube kit for $76.57 (black). Individual cubes (with center shelves) average $15-16).
***
Remember to put the heavier stuff toward the bottom of the stack.
-- Marge
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