How to Take Care of a Bookshelf

As you may know, I am a huge fan of decorating my bookshelves. I always play around and try to make my books look the best. I organize them by colours, heights, binding, editions etc. And throught the years, I have learnt some ways how to keep my books in a good condition while they lay on the shelves. Even though I am pretty sure that every reader knows very well how to take care of their bookshelf, I have decided to share my tips with you. Hope it will be helpful. Also, let me know what do you think is the best way to store books.

  • For every bookshelf is very important to be situated in a dry and warm room. Otherwise the pages of the books might draw some moisture from the air and begin to curl.
  • It is also very important to clean your bookshelves continuously because dust absorbs moisture and it turns into mold. And it causes the unattractive smell of old paper that we all know from public libraries.
  • It is useful to leave some space in every shelf to be able to pull the book out of a row easily without making any damage to its spine. Spine is the most important part of a book for it holds it together. So you better take care of it.
  • If a book has got a ribbon bookmark, always wedge the tail of it between the pages of a book to keep it clean and prevent fraying.
  • It is wise to leave some space behind the row of books to let the air freely circulate. Again, it is important for avoiding the dampness and mold. In case you have to store books in two rows due to lack of space, always make sure that there is at least a little gap between them.
  • Even though it is desirable to have a bookshelf in a daylighting, it is better to prevent the rays of the sun shining on it constantly for the colours of the spines could fade eventually.
  • If there is a blank space at the end of a row of books in the shelf, always use some kind of bookends. Otherwise the last book may start to shift and its spine can be damaged.
  • For the same reason, it is good to organize your books according to their heights. If the books support each other, their form remains undamaged for many years. 

    Comments

    1. Moc pěkný článek! Je těžké udržovat knihy v tom nejlepším stavu, ale starat se o ně je vždycky rozumnější než je nechat ležet ladem v knihovně. Přeci jen, knihy mají duši. :)

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