apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Bacon!

I like the changes. But I think you have to have Bacon in the last shot for me to be completely objective.

I can't keep my dogs off the sheepskin rug either. I consider it now a stylish substitute for a dog bed.

I really like the changes -

Will the next job have anything to do with moving that IKEA cabinet and TV from in front of the fireplace to someplace more suitable?

I think it looks great! I am not for the color coordinating books but it looked very cheerful.

Color coordinating can be overdone, but I have to admit I think I preferred them coordinated in your shelves.

Love, love the aubergine !

I like the after better, i think the rainbow of books detracted from the more subtle colors of the rest of the room.

I think like any decor trend color coded books has passed its peak but will always have a spot in the right space.

BTW im really jealous of the beautiful woodwork in that room. The wall color looks fantastic.

I'm still in it for colour-coordinating books, but not in the rainbow-y way you have up here- I break it up on different shelves. All the reds together, all the blacks together, all the blues together, etc- but not red-orange-yellow-green-blue-purple- that's too much for me. All my books are related to my job (all art and theory - I'm a curator) so I don't really need to organize by topic... The novels go under the bed or back to the library when done.

Plus, then it's easier to add new ones, when you don't need to adjust your whole arrangement to accommodate one book - you just stick a red next to a red and move the bookend over a bit...

I still prefer them colour ordered. I don't follow trends all that much but I think it looks less crazy, works for me anyway. I like the way you broke up the decorations and books in the after photos though.

I like your current set-up! The first one looks like you are using books as decoration, the second looks like you have books to read them. I think the color coordinating books look nice, but so can non-color coordinating bookshelves. I personally like to keep my books organized by subject matter.

what is the brand name of that purple. I have some left over purple paint i want to use in the bathroom, but it's a little too lavander for me. your color is perrrrfect.

as for the color coordinated, I don't mind, but it does seem a little too forced. Every time i see it, i think "you really took time out of your day to color code something???"

My books are still color coordinated, but I can see why you'd want to change once you added that bolder darker color next to the shelves (would have competed for attention). That aubergine color looks gorgeous btw.

Not so sure about the orange curtains though-- but maybe I just need to see them in context with the rest of the space--can't wait to see more photos! Very envious of your moldings.

I love that aubergine wall - it's fantastic. I admit that I have never found color coordinated books practical in my own life. I'm an academic, and I have a lot of books in my home office that I use, constantly, for work. I have to be able to find them quickly and easily so I organize by author. I suspect color coordination works better when you have fewer books than I have or when you use them differently than I do.

I have never liked the color coordinated book idea. I think a wall of books looks much better (overall) when the colors are mixed up.

And yes please: move that cabinet and TV to a more suitable location. And frame that art-work/fabric you currently have over your fireplace (or replace it with something else that is framed)!

As much as I think color-coordinating books is visually pleasing, I could never bring myself to do it.

A happy compromise might be to split your books out into warm and cool tones on either side of of your fireplace.

I love the paint, and your apartment looks lovely.

Nice changes. Bacon looks like he is digging his spot.

Thank you for posting this! I found the whole color-coding books fad completely impractical and weirdly disrespectful of the function of book collections. The new arrangement looks lovely, particularly against the white and purple paint.

Thank you, thank you for defying this trend. You've demonstrated how good books look in their natural environment.

I like the aubergine wall already, although I think that the green curtains might have worked. But I have to agree with the person above: please try to find a way to move the TV and stand from in front of that gorgeous fireplace.

I organize my books the Melvil Dewey Way. Lovely new wall color.

Love the new look. The color-coordinated book thing always looks crazy to me. The sort of crazy that smiles at you, which is the craziest kind of crazy.

We have a Frenchie who looks just like that, except without such a luxurious rug.

Bacon looks contemplative. Must be the aubergine.

This looks fantastic! I really do love the look of color coordinated books, but I really prefer the after.

I prefer the after photos.

Bacon is gorgeous! Can I ask where you cushions are from?

Looks fabulous! I'll admit, I have always hated the color-coordinated book trend...I don't know if I'm a purist, a snob, or a slob. ;)

OH so very much better!!! A more sophisticated look by far.

Greetings to Bacon!

!!
That aubergine!
Please tell us what it is!

the room was nice before, but the color coordinated books were a distraction... now the books support the overall aesthetic by connecting the wall color to the curtains

What bepsf said. It's a lovely room, but the cabinet and tv in front of the fireplace is just odd.

I like the color-coordination... but it would have looked better if you had broken them up to begin with, like you say. Love the purple with the grays and whites!

Better after.

I love my color-coordinated books. It may be a trend in design circles but in my real-life circle of friends and family it still has a wow factor. And it's pretty. To do away with something I love just because someone else thinks it's a cliche would be insincere and I want my home to be a sincere reflection of my own taste.

Well-said, bigwavejen.

I think your bookshelves now look as though they belong to someone who actually reads their books as opposed to someone who only decorates with them. MUCH better!

Goes to show that non color coded books are just as beautiful to look at.

hmm, i always find it odd that people make design decisions according to whether it's a "trend" or "in" ... why not just do what you like?

Where did all the comments go?

Love the paint, and am glad sanity is restored in bookshelves. If you're going to sort by color, why not by height as well?

i hopped on the bandwagon too and really liked how it made my books look on a white bookshelf. i just recently ran out of room and had a neat idea. since the space between each shelf is taller than the width, i stacked the books by color instead. so its kind of a vertical thing with each stack and i'm pretty happy with it...for now. its like a living thing that must evolve though. i don't want to get so stuck with one look.

what are those naughty looking things on the top shelf? LOL

I did as HLI and broke them into groups in different spots. I also stacked some sets, or did a combo stacked/leaned. I was able to better use my accent pieces that way, placing my blue vases or rattan balls to their best, color-emphasizing advantage. What began as "meh, brown" ended up being a glowing caramel next to my ivory and beige books!

I have always thought the color-coded way to arrange books was kind of silly, if you actually read them instead of just decorating with them.

Though I agree with bigwavejen--like the Keep Calm posters, I have never walked into someone's house and seen color-coordinated bookshelves. In the context of actual homes of people I know, any number of ideas that are "cliche" on AT would be fresh and different.

Oh, and what -are- those phallic items on the top shelf?

Love the orange curtains. Perfect pop of color for spring.

Kayla here -

Glad to hear the makeover is getting the thumbs up (in general) and that people are making up their own minds regarding the books-by-color trend. Like I said up top, I love it but it just wasn't working for us anymore so we switched.

Those "phallic" things (ha ha ha) are an attempt at organic extrusions in clay by yours truly. They were actually intended to be little light fixtures but the project fell by the wayside. Clearly there's a reason I'm not a professional ceramicist ;-)

Both sets of curtains are by Anthropologie - I'm not sure the green ones are sold any longer; we got ours on clearance.

Thanks for the comments on moving the TV... it's got us thinking about alternatives. This just means the full before and after post is getting delayed...

Paint colour!
Please!! It's beauutiful!

Kayla, again -

Sorry, I forgot to include the paint color. It's Caponata from Ben Moore's Affinity line. Deep, dark but really full of pigment and lovely in daylight and in the evening.

Some interior decorators purchase books "by the foot" to fill client shelves with leather or other attractive but meaningless covers that look nice but are never read. That's how I feel about rainbow book arrangements. If you mainly STORE your books, or maybe have a lot of colorful kids books, and that system works for you, that's fine -- for you. For people who keep books for research and need to grab the one they need without browsing their shelves for who-knows-how-long first, that system is just annoying.

I don't CARE what anybody else chooses to do, but when asked my opinion, I will give it -- as (obviously) will most people here. It doesn't need to make someone who is happy with their own system feel defensive -- your home is your castle, and nobody else's opinion really matters unless you let it. So if you like following trends and arranging books by color, don't let those of us who don't agree bother you. Take away what you find useful, and ignore the rest!

Color coding books?

Guess that's why we've always bucked the trends and told folks to identify their own style and decorate with what meets their needs and fits in the function of the room.

Books are many things to many people. To some, color coding feels like you're taking books and making them into something less than what they are. Are books decor? Are they a statement of who you are as a person? Or are they both?

Each person must decide that for themselves. If we're going to take a stand for our personal style, then the answer is arrange books by genre, non-fiction vs fiction, alphabetically (by title or author), or whatever else works for you, just not by color.

That's just our idea of what works.

Wow - my first visit to the site and I learn that color coding books is cliched? I guess it does seem a bit Martha Stewart but that's how I've done it for years (and believe me, my books are well loved and used - not decorative!) because that's how I think of books - I get a visual in my head of the book I want to find. It just makes the most sense, I guess. Came of stacking a bunch of orange penguins together. Now it gives me the fun of seeking out certain editions of used books! But I concur that it doesn't seem to be all that common in the 'real world' as many visitors have taken a while and commented on it as being different and kind of nice. Go figure.