Ten Ways to Add Custom Built-In Bookcases to Your Home

Have you decided to invest in custom built-in bookcases for your home?  Built-in shelving will give you versatile storage space and add a note of distinction to any room in your home.  However, if you thought built-in bookcases were just for your library, think again.  Here are ten ways to add built-in bookcases to your home.

OK, so this one is obvious.  Nevertheless, a home library or reading room with wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling, built-in shelving will make a classic and striking addition to your home.   If you have the space, built-in bookcases can even span two stories, as in this dramatic maple built-in library by Sketch N Build.  Whether you build a one-story or two-story library, a rolling ladder for reaching the top shelves won’t just be a practical necessity but also an intriguing accent.

Maple Built-in Library by Sketch N Build at CustomMade.com

Maple Built-in Library by Sketch N Build at CustomMade.com

Built-in shelves around your TV cabinetry can help soften the look of today’s sleek flat-screen TVs.  They can also help you add a personal touch to your media room.  The artisans at A Cut Above, LLC, created this custom oak theater room for a sports enthusiast customer.  The shelves are custom sized to house trophies and plaques and keep pom-poms and foam fingers handy.  The hockey stick displayed on the shelf above the TV leaves no doubt what are the favorite channels in this home.  If you have a passion for sports, a yen for film, or an addiction to video games, custom shelving can help you create the right environment in your entertainment room.

Oak Theater Room by A Cut Above LLC at CustomMade.com

Oak Theater Room by A Cut Above, LLC, at CustomMade.com

A custom built-in surround can turn your fireplace into a room’s showpiece.  Custom built and finished on site to match the floor and crown mouldings, this elegant poplar “Wallcott” fireplace surround by Emerald Custom Wood Design creates a beautiful and comfortable atmosphere for this room.  The built-in shelves are perfect for displaying artwork, curios, and photographs.  Your custom built-in surround can have more, or less, shelving sized for your own decorative items and can be designed to sweep majestically up the wall or create a smaller, more intimate space.  The choices are yours.

Poplar Wallcott Fireplace Surround by Emerald Custom Wood Design at CustomMade.com

Poplar “Wallcott” Fireplace Surround by Emerald Custom Wood Design at CustomMade.com

Whether you read before bedtime, need extra storage space, or want to display a private collection, custom built-in bookcases can be a perfect fit for your bedroom.  Your bedroom is one of the most personal areas of your home, and built-in shelves will give you the flexibility to personalize that space.  For example, Entertainment Centers Plus built various bookcases for this master bedroom retreat, including this built-in shelving unit and closet entry surround for displaying a doll and mug collection.  Surround yourself with the items you hold dear with custom designed built-ins for your bedroom.

Master Bedroom Retreat by Entertainment Centers Plus at CustomMade.com

Master Bedroom Retreat by Entertainment Centers Plus at CustomMade.com

Strictly speaking this might be cheating because this bookcase isn’t a built-in.  It’s designed to hang from the wall.  Regardless, this mahogany hanging bookcase by Turner Custom Furniture would look great as additional shelving above a headboard or as a replacement for a headboard.  Hidden legs give this bookcase extra support, and the built-in reading lights make this custom bookcase perfect for the bedtime reader.

Mahogany Hanging Bookcase by Turner Custom Furniture at CustomMade.com

Mahogany Hanging Bookcase by Turner Custom Furniture at CustomMade.com

A custom built-in dining room sideboard like this one by Hammer Time Studios can show off your favorite centerpieces, serving dishes, knickknacks, or your cookbook collection.  A strategically located built-in can also hide structures or objects, such as, in this case, a radiator.  Built-ins can hide features like pipes and beams and can also be designed to accommodate HVAC vents that might otherwise be blocked.  If you have structural features in a room you’d like to conceal or work around, a custom built-in bookcase could be the solution.

Dining Room Sideboard by Hammer Time Studios at CustomMade.com

Dining Room Sideboard by Hammer Time Studios at CustomMade.com

If “out-of-sight, out-of-mind” describes your approach to storage space, or if you really want to freak out your guests the next time you host a Halloween party, then a bookcase that disguises the entrance to an entire room would be just right for you.  Dowd Temple Designs can custom build a concealed closet or hidden storage door for you that from the outside looks just like a normal built-in bookcase.  In fact, it is a built-in bookcase.  However, a push rolls the bookcase back on hidden casters and reveals a large walk-in space.  This unusual custom built-in bookcase would be perfect as a door for a large closet or any room or passage that needs some extra privacy.

Concealed Closet or Hidden Storage by Dowd Temple Designs at CustomMade.com

Concealed Closet or Hidden Storage by Dowd Temple Designs at CustomMade.com

Slightly less dramatic but still very cool, a bookcase can be built into a swinging closet door to maximize a small room’s storage space.  Trunk to Trunk built these custom stained poplar bookshelf closet doors with swivel rollers at the bottom to help support the weight of the books.  Custom doors like these would work great in a home office, child’s bedroom, or hall closet.

Stained Poplar Bookshelf Closet Doors by Trunk to Trunk at CustomMade.com

Stained Poplar Bookshelf Closet Doors by Trunk to Trunk at CustomMade.com

If trap doors and secret passages are not for you, you could dress up an entryway by surrounding it with custom built-in shelving.   This doorway arch by Durham Bookcases gives you plenty of shelves and cabinets for storing and displaying books or other items, and the niches above the door are perfect for small home dĂŠcor objects.

Doorway Arch by Durham Bookcases at CustomMade.com

Doorway Arch by Durham Bookcases at CustomMade.com

The vertical storage options of a built-in bookcase will mean more room in your home office.   This built-in desk bookshelf by Lipuma Woodworking was custom made to match the existing office furniture and built above the desk by filling in an offset wall space.   With custom built-in bookshelves and some creative planning, a previously wasted corner is now productive workspace (with a window view to boot).

Desk Bookshelf by Lipuma Woodworking at CustomMade.com

Desk Bookshelf by Lipuma Woodworking at CustomMade.com

Whether you want a stunning focal point, an efficient work area, or a private space, CustomMade artisans can create custom built-in bookcases for any room in your home.

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