Why not white bookcases so they look like part of the architecture rather than the furniture?

I would also do white bookcases, I think they would look very fresh and crisp against the green. - maybe a desk lamp and floor lamp to help with cozy lighting. That is great room, you have a lot of good stuff to work with!

Hmmm - I like the idea of white and I won't have to worry about the woods clashing. Are you thinking white tall cabinets on each side of the window?

Thanks so much for the help. I know I need pictures and lamps but was leaving them for last. Hubby needs a table to put his glass or book on plus a light for the chair.

Keep those ideas coming - appreciate it

Pat

Sure, tall bookcases on each side of the window and a small white piece under the window (bench with cushion?) will give almost a 'built in" appearance, White shutters or wood venetian blinds would keep a consistent white appearance to the windows on the front of the house, but you could do colored tapes to coordinate with the upholstery, if you wanted.

I could also see thick, white, wall-mounted shelves, on the wall next to the chair. 'Floating' shelves would feel lighter and take up no floor space. If you have a lot of books, you could repeat the idea over your desk.

Bookcases flanking the window would look nice, especially if the window is in the middle of the wall. They would reduce some of the light coming in the window tho', if they come close to the window's edges.

I would line the whole wall behind the chair with bookcases (white) and put the chair in front of them. And then do some drapes or something on the window...

mystic, do you mind sharing the color on the walls? I have been looking for a green for my dining room and really like yours.

Love the ideas and the consensus is certainly white!

Gives me alot to think about and it would really tie the room together. Thanks for the suggestions.

Sashasmommy - I am afraid the chair will come out too far if I did the whole wall but maybe not...have to give it some more thought and need to find someone to build them.

The window treatment is going to have to go. Great ideas - thanks so much
Pat

I wouldn't just stick book cases in there unless you have a need for book cases. That room is lovely, and a side table for the reading chair, and some accessories, and wall decor, plus a smaller chair much like the desk chair would be a nice addition. I'd even consider moving the desk into the corner and having each purpose area in it's own corner with a floor lamp behind them.

Sasafras - I do need bookcases and I also need a side table for the reading chair.

Wondering if I could buy ready made bookcases in white that would look decent? I am liking the idea of white much better than the warm brown.

Anyone with recommendations on ready made?

Also, don't know why I couldn't post before but I set up a post for LannieLynn - the color is Sherman williams Ryegrass.

Thanks for all the wonderful ideas - this forum is priceless.

Thanks again
Pat

An unfinished furniture store might have bookcases in a number of sizes. They would probably know someone who could paint them white. The unfinished furniture store out here even had some painted white as I guess that was most likely color. They were very sturdy, they made them right there in back part of building. You might want to get 36-40 in. high bookcases so that you could put light on top & some other things or have some artwork up on wall above them.Would make it cozy! I like 10 in. wide shelves in them & 36-40 in. wide. So that would give you something to go by to see if they might work well in your room. You have the tall white closet doors so I don't think you want really tall bookcases. I have 30 books on 1 shelf of mine & some are standing & some larger ones on their sides. Mine have 3 shelves & of course you could put books on top So could handle around 100 or so books per bookcase.

Have you checked Ikea for bookcases? I'm sure they could be customized to fit by some strategic cutting of the shelves and adding trim to give them a built in look. We're doing that in our library only ours are stained wood. Pal's idea of a window seat is a great one too. We'll be doing that in our library.

Once you have the bookcases in I would set the desk angled facing out of the corner it is now closest to and leave the chair and ottoman basically where they are. This will allow you and your hubby to be somewhat facing each other while sharing the room.

I was thinking exactly what Palimpset wrote. I also second the IKEA recommendation as they have lots of configurations and the prices are reasonable.

Wow - I am overwhelmed with the help on this board - what a great find!

Thanks so much for all the ideas, I will have to look around and believe it or not - I have never been in an IKEA. The closest one is 75 miles away - but it might be worth the drive. In the morning I will look and see if we have any unfinished furniture stores. My husband will be able to paint them - great ideas.

Lots of great suggestions here and so appreciated
Pat

Ok - this room is coming together in my mind.

I found an end table that matches the desk - so that's a go.

At Pal's suggestion I am going with the white wood venetian blinds in both rooms.

Still unsure of the height of the bookcases (as Sasafras mentioned - do I need them) I do..but don't have enough books to fill two of them so thinking of Sunny's idea of the shorter ones.
Here's the next problem. The window isn't exactly centered - to the left of the window (near the desk) I have 53 1/2 inches and to the right I only have 50 inches. If I had them custom made it wouldn't show but that is out of the budget. Do I put them both flush to the corner of the room and have more space by the window on one side or do I center the left side? I am so not good at this stuff:)
Thanks again
Pat

I would place them evenly related to the window and allow the variation to be in the corners.

Ok Pal - thanks so much

I'm seeing a tall white bookcase where your desk currently is! I'd angle the desk over on the other side of the room, so that you can see out the window. Desk will be "floating," not against a wall, several feet away from the window, not right in front of it, iykwim. Chair could be situated in the corner near the bookcase, creating a reading nook with a standing lamp to the right.

Just another idea. I definitely am loving the white bookcase idea! Pretty room!

I wouldn't worry about not having enough books to fill 2 tall bookcases. You can always add other objects to the empty areas on the shelves like framed pictures, plants, vases, baskets, pottery, just to name a few things.

As mentioned above I would add trim to fill in any spaces you might end up with. It would look more built in than just two purchased book cases trying to fill two slightly different sized areas on either side of your window. Once trimmed you'd have to add a top the full length between each side of the window and the wall to fill in the spaces there too. I drew a picture using graph paper of that wall space to give an idea of what it would look like. Ofcourse you could add crown to the front face of the book shelf tops for added detail before you add the top too. I didn't take time to draw that in, though I did draw in the window seat with cushion.

I think justgotabme has the right idea. Use store bought but dress it up. It doesn't take a whole lotta skill to make a windowseat and it would give you options as to where to store some of the office supplies.
I think the desk and chair would do better painted white in that room.

Justgotabeme - thanks so much for the drawing and I like the window seat. I was thinking much taller bookcases.

I do like the idea of filling in the space with trim and also the molding on the bookcases. I already have dropped crown molding with rope lights inside of them - doesn't show up much during the day but at night looks great. I have someone who can do the trim - he can build the bookcases too but he's too pricey. I like the idea of buying ready made and let him fill in. Trying to keep the cost down

I will have to buy a few things to fill in - don't forget, this is a second house and most of my nicer things are already used (two built-ins in living room) and the other stuff is filling in up north. Framed picutures - I have plenty and pottery is always fun to buy.

What a talented group in GW - amazing help. Many thanks
Pat

I think the shelving by the window is a great idea. You solve your space issue and also get more counter area too!

Here is a link that might be useful: plaques

You're welcome. I thought I read that you agreed with someone that recommended shorter bookcases since you didn't have enough books to fill tall ones. I just chose a size that was readily available.
I noticed the crown with the lighting in it. We planned on doing that in our daughters room, but have yet done so. It's nice to see how it looks. Very pretty.

Justgotbe - AS you can see I can confused on the height of the bookcases and this whole "white idea" is new to me but I am loving it. Bac717 assured me that all I need to do is go shopping to fill in the spaces:) Like I needed help..lol

The lights are fantastic and really look so much better than they do in photos. I have them in 3 rooms now and I love them. I put them in my MB that had a tray ceiling so they are a little different but still really nice - your daughter will love them!
Pat

What height bookcases you get is totally up to what look you want and how much you want to put on the bookcases. I think just about any height will work if you build them in by adding trim.

Our daughter is in the Air Force stationed in South Korea. She'll most likely never live at home again. (boo hoo) She's happy though. We were able to catch her on Skype early yesterday morning. That helps.

How tall is your ceiling? I had our bookcases made to go up to about eye level (for me--I'm 5'4") on our 9' wall. There is space to put a picture above each bookcase--I have leaned the pictures against the wall instead of hanging them. We have dropped trim around the room at the height of the top of the windows. IMHO the whole wall looks great! The double bookcases are 4' wide on each side of double pocket doors.

Anne

Google *csn linon anna bookcase*. They come in white and are available in different widths.

I got the narrow one but it's still in the box! LOVE the *X* sides!

The anna bookcase is cute but I don't want anything I have to put together - think it will stay in the box in our house:)
Just - glad you caught your daughter on Skype - I am sure you miss her so much. She's happy and that's what counts.

We have a 9' wall also but our crown molding starts at 8' and then has the lights dropped in. The top of the window is about 8 inches below the bottom of the molding.
Think I am picuturing taller since we are tall - I am 5'7 and hubby is taller.

Thank you Mystic.
I forgot to mention that I'd never been to an Ikea until November. The closest one to me is 299 miles. That's not the one I went to though. I flew out to spend some time with our daughter in Cali and help her drive her vehicle back home for safe keeping while she's away. She wound up driving so I could take hundreds of pictures. She didn't mind since she'll be without a car for a whole year.
Anyway I drew up another plan for you to check out. This time I made the bookshelves taller adding a shelf over the window and stained them. Oh and I drew a drawer below the window seat.

I LOVE that just - it looks fantastic- thank you so much - you nailed it. That's the look I want but I think I will keep it in white.
What a treasure this board is for me - I love the idea of the drawer!!
Sweet dreams

I misread you're last post about the white shelves. That's why I did them stained. Here they are in white...

I found bookcases at a re-sale shop. The bookcases were used for display in a children's clothing boutique. Any event, I used them on either side of the sole window in my office. Using the bookcases gave a "built in" look to that particular wall. Fortunately, the bookcases were the same height as the top of the window sill. DH built a bench with storage under, placed between the bookcases under the sill for a window seat. It was a great way to achieve a built in bookcase look for very little $$. I think both bookcases cost me $50.

Fortunately, the wood color was similar to that of the hardwood and trim in my office so I didn't need/want to paint them. I love the color of your walls and trim. White bookcases would certainly give you that "built in" look. If I hadn't found the second hand bookcases, I would definitely have chosen something from IKEA.

Can't wait to see your "after" picture!