What is so great about Ikea Billy bookcase?
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10 years ago
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10 years agoRelated Discussions
Affordable bookcases: Sauder or Ikea Billy?
Comments (20)Actually I don't have all that much space to cover... the room is small, 9x10, and because of doorway access issues I can only really install 6 ft of bookshelves, in other words three 24" wide units if we were talking in Ikea-speak, LOL. The units would essentially go floor-to-ceiling (8 ft ceiling) and have a total of at least six 2-foot-wide shelves per unit. Thus, 12 feet of usable book shelves per unit, x 3 units = 36 feet of shelves for books. I currently have enough books to cover 20 of those 36 available feet, and since I don't plan to stop buying books in the forseeable future, I need at least 20 feet of shelving to house my current 'stock' plus more for future purchases. I don't do e-books, LOL. The bookcases were originally going to go along both 10-foot walls but then I realized recently that something else needs to go along one of those walls instead *and* I need to leave at least 3 ft clear near the doorway on the remaining 10 ft wall for handicap access. One of the 9-foot walls has heating baseboard along its entire length, plus a window, so that one's no good; the other 9-foot wall is the room's doorway plus a closet whose trapdoor is the only access to the attic. I went to an unfinished furniture store in my area and was surprised that the cost of them (after being stained or painted) wasn't too far from already-finished furniture. You don't want to put a paintbrush in my hand, LOL! a history of disaster. Unfortunately I don't have access to any kind of vehicle that can be used to pick up large items, so would need to rent a van or something similar from UHaul, Budget, etc etc and then (and this is the hardest part!) find someone to help load and unload it when I need them to do it, rather than when they have the spare time to do it. I'm lucky if I can get "help" if I give at least a week's notice, 'subject to cancellation at the last minute' (which happens at least 50% of the time, LOL). :-(...See MoreBig ol' bookcase: IKEA Liatorp?
Comments (35)Thank you all for the helpful input! I'm still mulling it all over. I'll think about it and look around, and then put it on the backburner - then start the thinking process all over again. Just not sure WHAT we want to do, and I'm not even sure if I will be happiest with floor-to-ceiling bookcases, or counter-height bookcases running along one wall. I still love the collected look of Jane Fonda's gallery library too ... Although when I showed DH three oak bookcases that were going together on our CL recently (one in the middle taller than the two on either side, which were barrister style - would have lent itself to the Jane Fonda look, I think), he quipped, "What are you gonna do? Open a cigar store?" So clearly he has a different take on slightly mismatched cabinetry than I do. We've nixed the CL bookcases as we aren't sure we could easily get them up the staircase and then do the turn on the landing to get into the reading room. Having to hire movers adds a whole new problematic aspect to purchasing a large CL unit too. Building them in the room would certainly be preferable, so I'm going to keep thinking about how to do this. And trying to figure out exactly what I want in the room!...See MoreHelp matching Ikea bookcases in white
Comments (4)Thanks, Becky! I'm bookmarking that one, too. Oh, dang, writersblock, I was hoping they'd match but that was too much to ask for, really. Thanks for answering my question. Painting them is an option I'll keep in mind. Or she doesn't try to match them but buys Billy or Liatorp in another color. Billy offers a dark blue, which is really pretty! Another option I should research is whether we can hack 2 Billys together to create a deeper cabinet. My DH is handy and has a bisquit joiner so this is possible. We could top it with a slab of wood to cover the seams, either in wood (she loves pine) or paint it to match Billy's white. Most of the other seams would be hidden behind doors or by another bookcase. The only seams that might be visible are the shelves for the center unit, which would stay open for access to the Roku, the kids' gaming stuff, etc....See MoreBookcases, again. But only about bookcases this time I promise.
Comments (22)Yes, and that is the first time that has been asked; "...do you have fruit on your books in that bookcase?" It turns out, believe it or not, I have a tchotchke shortfall. A dearth of doodads. I am just grabbing at things, including marble peaches which could roll off and leave a cannonball-like indent in my floors. Incongruous, you say? You mean you don't read by candlelight whilst slurping on peaches? I might scour the house looking for more stuff, but any doodads I might find are already busy doodadding wherever they are, amirite? Everytime I walk past this thing now I do something to it. First I threw out all the jackets. Then, I turned them around ... which meant I could've kept the jackets. Next I might chalk paint the whole thing, books and trinkets included. But rest assured, it is on its way out. She would turn the books around and add more. Go duke it out with Arapaho....See Moregsciencechick
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