Look! Store Your Books in the Rafters

We were charmed to the core over this ingenious book storage idea. Yes, these are just planks of painted plywood nailed to the supports for the loft above. They create perfect cubby spaces to store books, baskets and even small lights. Since we're in California, it would probably be a good idea to secure everything in place so it doesn't shake right off.

It helps that the ceiling is lower than a normal one, so you can actually reach the books. But we thought it was a pretty slick way of storing books in a small space without taking up a lot of the walls or floor. It doesn't hurt that so many of the books are neutral colors too. What do you think? Have you got a space this'll work in?

UPDATE: Because of the popularity of the post I wanted to give my dad props for coming up with this idea. His passion for sailing and all that time on a small vessel made him think about space in a new way. Good Job Dad!

Comments (22)

I would suggest using heavy duty wood screws rather than nails. Just in case.

Great idea. I wonder why no one thought of it sooner?

Awesome! but for practicality's sake... I feel bad for anyone who for some act of the lord happens to have a few stacks of books fall on their head... or someone who'll eventually have the big idea of placing something of some value up there and have it fall. How bad is this for Feng Shui too?

It's kinda cute, but I'm amazed, after all the tragic ATLA tales of roof leaks, that this is being touted as the next big thing. Though I guess the books would absorb the water before it hits the furniture below...

We have ceilings just like this and are *intrigued*.

I'm thinking...if you didn't want to go whole hog across the ceiling, you could do them where the walls meet the ceiling.

I love this idea, though I don't have the environment for it to work. Yet.

great idea. i have metal beams unfortunately but i'll definitely consider a way to adopt this.

I did this about 20 years ago in my place. I have wood beam ceilings and the beams are just a teeny bit deeper than paperback books, so I left a little gap between the shelf and the wall so that I can poke my fingers up behind the books and shove out the one I want. I have it above the bed so I have something to stand on when I do this!

I have 18" beams. I think I might do this. So some books may fall on my head when I sleep. hah

My only gripe is accessibility. I wouldn't be very likely to loan out books or even re-read them out of sheer laziness due to not wanting to get something to stand on (especially if they are in color order and I can't remember the color spine of the book I'm looking for). But it is cute as a decorative idea! I'm just a bibliophile and like to keep them close! ;)

Of course, this post actually started last summer, but oh well. I don't understand why the colors of the book jackets are such a concern to AT.

Lowbrow?

My only concern, like Lizzard, would be accessibility.

Why does this always get posted? I could swear I've seen this numerous times on this site before

I like this idea, but maybe just for books that I don't need as often. It would be a good way to keep them a little bit out of the way too.

Thats an INTERESTING idea! Except might be a pain in the neck if you needed to reach one.

Jen Ramos
'100% Recycled DESIGNER Cards & More'
www.madebygirl.com
madebygirl.blogspot.com

Lowbrow? Really? How about:

Great idea for storage! Don't weed when you don't have to. I know, consumerist greed leads to clutter, blah blah blah, but don't believe the hype--love what you have and be creative on how you love them!

This just looks messy to me. Why clutter up the clean and open lines of your ceiling. Isn't one of the main principles of AT that clutter in your home is reflective of clutter in your life? If you have that many books, donate some. Besides, I've lived with beamed ceilings, they are huge dust collectors. I wouldn't store anything I cared about up there.

It made me dizzy.

They are books stored in rafters, not a comment on society...

Take another look at the picture. If that looks cluttered and pack rattish to you then the clean simple lines you're looking for in your living space most likely come with padded walls.

Ooooh... Structural engineer here, registering and logging in to say: be careful with that. Joists aren't meant to take book loads, particularly if they're supporting a floor above.

If anything starts bowing, take some of the books off. Don't concentrate all your books in one area if you choose to do this. If you start hearing unusual creaking from the floor above the joists, offload some books and see if that helps. Inspect the joists regularly for signs of wear and cracking.

And then, don't say I didn't warn ya...

...and in a seismic zone, I wouldn't recommend doing this at *all*.