Tuesday, February 19, 2013

How we organize all the books

I LOVE getting questions from readers! This one came right after our new Library Bookcase post.
Thanks Jennifer!

I don't have an overly organized bookcase. By 'overly organized' I mean I don't have it organized alphabetically or by the Dewy Decimal system. 
I read mostly non-fiction so our fiction section fits on one shelf alone. As for the rest of my non-fiction collection I organize them by topic.
While I don't have a super organized system, I do have a weird system all of my own. Well the system itself isn't weird but the categories are a bit unorthodox. Here are the topics found in our library:
1) Healthy Living. Mostly heath books, or exercise books.
2) Sewing and other craft books.
3) Finance Books, I love a good finance book. I have no idea why but I love books about saving money. I think it's the organizer in me . . . I love new ideas on how to organize our spending.
4) Spiritual books. 
5) Biographies, every one from Tori Spelling to Sidney Poitier, my tastes vary greatly in this area.
6) Green Living, this section takes up two shelves. Here's one:
7) Gardening.
8) Simple Living. I have enough books on simple living to garner their own shelf. Ironic because having tons of books on the same subject is definitely NOT living simple ;).
9) Style books. Books on pretty clothes and defining your personal style. Choosing clothes and defining my own style wasn't something that came easily to me. I found a lot of help in the writing of people who have it together in that department!
10) Adoption books. This is also where we'll keep the books on babies and kids and subsequently teenagers.
11) An entire shelf dedicated to Home Organization. 
12) Another shelf dedicated to Home Design.
13) Cleaning and Home Maintenance. 
14) I have an entire shelf for Ms. Martha Stewart herself. I have no idea why I have a whole section on Martha. All of her books could fit into other categories in the bookcase but for some reason I like grouping them all together!
Last is my favorite section:
15) An entire shelf for "Housewife" Books. Those are books that have anything to do with being a housewife. Or any retro books about women.
And that's how we do it. I could alphabetize them within each category but so far I don't have enough books to make that worthwhile. Maybe one day when we have more books we'll need to get them in alphabetical order, but now it's easy enough to go to the section and find the book I'm looking for.

I almost forgot to mention that the books that are either currently in use or that I have recently purchased and haven't gotten around to reading yet, get put on top of the lower bookcase between the A and Z. Once they've been read they get put into their respective categories. This way I ensure that I don't overlook or forget about a book I intended on reading! 
Bonus:
I collect Martha Stewart Magazines I have approx 150 of them. They are relegated to the bottom shelves of the bookcase because they are very heavy.
I hold the magazines in magazine holders from Ikea and I group them by month. That way I can grab an entire month at a time. It's really handy for planning seasonal menus or for holiday ideas! Just grab a month and you have am abundance of ideas for each and every holiday!

I hope that answered your question Jennifer!

32 comments:

  1. you sure have a lot of books! i just tend to use the public library a lot. :)

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  2. Love the idea of grouping magazines by the month -- so smart!

    Your library is so beautiful. I adore this space so much!

    Jenny
    www.simcoestreet.blogspot.com

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  3. I know you have already been sharing some titles in the past. But I was wondering, could you make a small selection of your favorite books for each of your personal categories? I would love to have your advice on these kinds of books!

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    1. I am working on a post about some of our favorite books right now!!!
      I'll have it up next week! :)
      Ashli

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  4. I really like your idea about keeping the books you haven't read out in a separate place so you don't overlook one. We definitely need to do that. Husband is an obsessive book-buyer!

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  5. I'm envious of your book collection!

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  6. OMG! organizing magazines by the month....brilliant! I am so doing that right now, can't believe I never thought of that. Thank you Ashli, love your blog!

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  7. I love how bright your room is. The book cases look fabulous. I don't have room either for all kinds of books, so we visit the library as well. Hubby and daughter go through books like crazy!!! They read A LOT!

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  8. I have just about every issue of Martha Stewart's Living & I also organize them by the month. All the ideas/recipes are right there for any holiday or season you are interested in.

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  9. I love seeing what books other people have in their collections. Thanks for sharing.

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  10. Very cool! And that's a great way to organize magazines too. I would love to see which finance books you enjoy!

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    1. Can do!!! I'll get working on it right away!!!
      Ashli

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  11. Oh wow! I find it so interesting the books people choose to own. Your categories were mostly topics I'm interested in as well, and some of those covers you pictured really caught my eye. I'd love to hear some books you reference often or specially enjoyed for myself to check out.

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  12. I have so many MSL magazines and love them. This is a great idea for organizing them!
    I have similar tastes to you. Can you share your favorite books from each category??

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    1. Yes, Definitely.
      I am working on a post about my favorite books! Should be ready by next week!
      Lots of Love
      Ashli

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  13. Love your new bookshelves and how you organize your books. I'm fascinated by the style category... any books that really helped you find your personal clothing style?

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    1. I can definitely write a post about them!!! Thanks for asking! I'll get working on it asap!!!
      Ashli

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  14. Great post! As an avid reader, I would love if you followed up your follow up with a post on some of your favorite books from each of those categories. Jen Jones did a similar post and it helped me find some new reads on organizing. Thanks!

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  15. That all makes sense and I love the books in waiting on top of the bookshelf.Regards Kathy A, Brisbane, Australia

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  16. Love! I need to redo our shelves in our library/living room. Right now they mostly contain non-fiction and our others are scattered here and there (my office, the kitchen, the family room). I find I am buying more and more non-fiction these days. Ok...am I the only one blowing up the pictures to see what titles you have on the shelves? LOL I have loved everything you have recommended to date. Would love a list of favorites by category as well. And, keeping the ones you need to read between the A and Z is genius. Ours are everywhere and then we can't remember which have been read and which have not!

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  17. I love the idea of keeping my new books separate from the rest. How many times have new books been forgotten because they get put on the shelf. Thanks for the tip. Lisa xo

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  18. So refreshing to see someone organize NOT by color! Although its a sleek look, there's no way to find what we'd need. We separate fiction from non-fiction, then break down into travel, history, authors grouped together, etc. I envy the "by color" look. But with 6 good sized bookcases in our house, we'd be lost! Love to go through for library donations several times a year - always seem to find something we loved and want to re-read. Great post!

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    1. haha I second your feeling on organizing by color! I think it works for a small collection but definitely NOT for a large collection!!!
      Ashli

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  19. Oh my, I am jealous! It looks amazing, I wish I had the space to collect books like you do! Hopefully in our next house, as I am an avid reader. I also second (third? fourth?) the idea for a post about your favorite books in each category!

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  20. I organise mine similarly except I also have an entire shelf on cookbooks as I dont have room for them in my little kitchen, but that will all change once the kitchen renovation is underway! Martha deserves her own shelf I agree :)

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  21. Where do you get all of your books from? Since they can get pretty expensive, is there a discount bookstore or website you recommend?

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  22. Organizing magazines by month is BRILLIANT!! What a great way to have all the seasonal good stuff together...I am stealing this idea. :) Your whole system looks great!

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  23. Another tip for book organizing - you can create an electronic catalog of your collection! There are many programs available, I am using All My Books.

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  24. Your style is such an inspiration! This organization system is extremely helpful, thanks for sharing.

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  25. Do you have some favourite books in the housewife section? Trying to see the titles by zooming in on the picture, which feels rather stalker-esque and is also not that effective :)

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