Home Library Designs: Maximizing Space Under Stairs
Ark. Brunilda Basha
“A house without books is like a body without a soul.”
—Marcus Tullius Cicero
Books are one of the most powerful tools for gaining spiritual wealth because they encompass some of the most eloquent expressions of everything within human capacity to know. The human awareness of such universal notions provides a metaphysical pathway beyond. Sometimes all we need to do is stand in front of a wall of books to calm down and breathe.
At times, we have so many books that even an entire wall space is insufficient. Other times, our living environment may not be large enough to accommodate the creation of a reading room or a suitable space for setting up a library. In a duplex or multi-story house, one of the places where we can maximize its use and give it the role we need is the space under the stairs, at the sides, or in the corner formed by the stairs.
In other circumstances, the space formed under the steps may be a negative space that we do not know how to use. Among the various functions that we can assign to that location is the creation of a library. This library design approach can be used not only when there is no space for a library but also to emphasize the importance of books and reading. Concentrating books in the crucial area of vertical movement causes family members to encounter books daily and occasionally stop to pick one up to read.
There are numerous methods to design the library area as long as it blends beautifully with the overall design of the house and the designated library space. Below are some ideas you can view and adapt to your home.
IDEA 1
One way is to treat the entire space under the stairs as the library. The bookshelf is incorporated into the entire space of the stairs, creating a consistent and attractive style. You can fill the entire area under the stairs with as many books as you want. This gives the treatment a solid look. The divisions of the bookshelves can also be made in irregular shapes. The materials can be MDF or natural wood, depending on how the stairs are designed. White is recommended because it creates the illusion of more space.
IDEA 2
If the space allows, another innovative method for storing books in stairs is to install shelves on the side of the wall and furnish the floor space at the lower level as a reading nook with chairs and other components that give harmony and aesthetic value. Because it allows the creation of the necessary height space, this form of treatment is easier to realize when the design of the house stairs is linear or L-shaped. Using the same principle, the area under the stairs can be used not only as a library with bookshelves but also as a split and used for other purposes. Half of it can be a bookshelf, while the other half can be used to create a work atmosphere with a desk. The attached wall can be decorated with photo frames or paintings, or it can be left plain. If you want to add extra style to the interior, you can match the material of the bookshelf with the material of the stairs.
IDEA 3
In many houses, a flat space is created at the level where floors connect with each other through the beam, which often serves as a dust collection spot. This space can be well utilized for storing books. It also adds elegance and aesthetic value to the interior treatment of the wall in this way. A similar effect can be achieved if the stairs are attached to the wall where the beams of the lower and upper floors create a vacuum. To fill the gap, horizontal wooden slats can be used.
IDEA 4
Another extremely useful application can be achieved under the designs of rear stairs. If the risers of the stairs are formed by right-angled planes, the area under the stairs can be used for storing books. As a result, the same stairs can be used for both vertical movement and book storage.
IDEA 5
If the space under the stairs does not allow for the first treatment, and furthermore, the structure of the stairs might be metallic, you can build your bookshelf in the place where the railings would be installed. In this way, not only do you create space for your books, but you also provide a spatial separation from the rest of the room. Additionally, it adds safety to the use of the stairs. You can paint the library the same color as the stairs to make it look like a well-thought-out continuation of the same style and design language.
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