How to Choose a Bookshelf or Etagere
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A full-height bookcase and a slim five-tier etagere can sit in the same corner and do completely opposite jobs. One stores. The other shows off. Figuring out how to choose a bookshelf really comes down to which of those two you need, and how much wall you're willing to give up to get it.
Most people start with looks and end up frustrated three weeks later, when the shelves sag or the whole piece feels too bulky for the room. So before you fall for a finish, measure. Get the wall width, the ceiling height, and the depth of the walkway in front of it. A unit deeper than 12 inches will swallow a narrow hallway.
Open etagere or closed bookcase?
An etagere is the airy one, open on the sides, usually built on thin metal or wood uprights with a few floating shelves. It reads light. Because you can see straight through it, it barely interrupts a sightline, which makes it a favorite in small living rooms and beside sofas. The tradeoff: everything on it is visible, so it wants styling, not stuffing.
A closed bookcase, with solid sides and often a back panel, does the heavy lifting. It hides clutter, holds more weight, and anchors a wall. If you actually own a lot of books, the real ones, hardbacks that stack and lean, this is the honest choice. At ARCADA we lean toward closed units in home offices and open etageres in living spaces. But nothing stops you from running both on the same wall.
Size, depth, and the weight it can really hold
Shelf depth matters more than people expect. Standard hardcovers run about 9 to 10 inches deep, so a 10- to 12-inch shelf covers most collections with room to spare. Go shallower, say 8 inches, and you're building a display piece for paperbacks and objects, not a working library.
Height changes the whole feel of the room. A tall, narrow tower pulls the eye up and makes a low ceiling feel taller. A long, console-height shelf does the reverse, stretching a wall sideways and leaving space above for art. Then there's load. A loaded four-foot shelf can carry 40 to 60 pounds of books. Cheap particleboard bows under that within a year. Solid wood, or a shelf with a center support, holds its line.
Styling it so it doesn't look like a storage unit
This is where the etagere earns its keep. Leave roughly a third of each shelf empty. Stack some books flat, stand others upright, and let a bowl or a small plant break the rhythm. Vary the heights. We've found that grouping objects in odd numbers reads more relaxed than perfect symmetry, though a matched pair of tall vases up top can look calm and deliberate.
Color helps too. If the shelves are busy, pull the palette back to two or three tones. Turn a few book spines inward for a quiet, uniform look, or leave them facing out for warmth. For the ratios, our guide on how to style open shelving goes deeper. And if you're still sorting out the bigger pieces around it, how to choose furniture covers scale and proportion.
Browse our Furniture range for both closed bookcases and open towers, or the Living Room collection if you're styling around a sofa.
Frequently asked questions
How do I choose a bookshelf for a small room?
Go tall and narrow rather than wide, and pick an open etagere over a closed bookcase. The see-through frame keeps the wall from feeling blocked, and the vertical height draws the eye up instead of eating floor space.
What depth should a bookshelf be?
Ten to twelve inches handles most hardcover books comfortably. Eight inches works for paperbacks and decorative objects, but it will leave larger books hanging over the front edge.
Is an etagere strong enough for heavy books?
Some are, some aren't. Check the shelf material and whether there's a center support. Solid wood or metal-framed shelves carry weight well; thin, unsupported spans over three feet tend to bow under a full row of hardbacks.