Some Las Vegans still want their libraries
Groucho Marx famously said, ’I must say I find television very educational. The minute somebody turns it on, I go to the library and read a good book.’ But in this digital age, are in-home libraries still a popular choice, or are they "Gone With the Wind"?
According to interior designer Briana Tiberti, there’s a small demand for help setting one up. "It's the — not ’older’ clientele — but there are some people, like attorneys, who always have a lot of books and ask for libraries. They still read books, and say that's the only way I want to do it."
Not so with the millennial generation, Tiberti said. ’Definitely, kids or younger people, forget about it. ’¦ I did a 30-year-old's house, and it was all about the computer. I don't think I even saw one book in there."
In her own home, she has a library that she paired with a guest room "because I have a lot of books I don't want to get rid of, and I didn't have a lot of space, but I thought this would be a nice accessory to the room. If you have people staying with you, it gives them something to do. And I've had people leave books there, too,’ she said.
When setting up a home library, she recommends that homeowners carefully choose lighting and shelving and the amount of space available. ’It's all about storage, shelving and access to the shelving. A lot of time we'll do a ladder to access all the shelves."
Tiberti, who owns T Square Studio, was part of Team Jonathan on last month’s HGTV series "Brother vs. Brother," which was taped in Las Vegas.
She recently completed a library in a room with a 20-foot ceiling. The shelves went up to the ceiling with ladder access all around, and the seating was placed on an open wire floor platform halfway up the wall, "so you could be up and seated amongst the books, as opposed to just down on the floor looking up at them," Tiberti explained.
She said the furniture needs to fit the scale of the available space. "The last one I did was a pretty small space, so it was just a nice lounge chair, reading lamp and table, so you could put your drink there and really sit down and relax. An ottoman is a great idea, too, so you can get really comfy."
You can hire a designer to come up with a theme, décor and to plan and execute any remodeling necessary, but you could also come up with your own plan using resources such as Better Homes and Garden’s room design tool, http://tinyurl.com/ou7c32j, or other planning software.
Which room to choose? Almost any one would work. One with a window will provide natural light, but then direct sunlight can damage books.
Even a niche carved out of a spot in a bedroom or underneath a stairway could provide a cozy space to lose yourself in a good book.
Your library could double as a home office or game room.
"Most people would try to combine a library with an office, so at some point they would have a desk in there to have work space as well,’ said interior decorator Laura Sullivan of My Favorite Design, based in Henderson.
The first thing to consider when decorating a library according to Sullivan is "exactly how many books and what they want to house in their library, so you can determine the space that's needed and the shelving particulars."
She recently met with a client, a retired military man who began collecting books in 1954. He sought her expertise on redoing his home office/casita.
"I was so excited because you don't get a lot of requests today for a home library, but I think it's so beautiful to be surrounded by books, and special photographs and mementos. It's hard to know where to begin" with a collection that size, she said.
Many furniture stores sell large wall bookshelf units, but you might want to invest in a custom piece, Sullivan said. "There are a lot of beautiful places the consumer can go to look at freestanding shelving in Las Vegas, but it's best to order things through a professional so it looks like a custom piece ’¦ does it need a ladder, does it need adjustable shelves, so you can custom select the finishes and size."
Sullivan particularly advises buying expandable shelving to add onto it later as a collection grows, "so you're not married to one particular piece, but it’s something that you can add square footage to as you expand."
Another key component of the room is lighting. She recommends good task lighting in libraries, "not like what you would have in your dining room."
"I would put the lights on a dimmer," she continued. "A floor lamp would be ideal next to a chaise lounge so you can turn it to just focus on your book."
Comfortable furniture will make the library a place you’ll want to use often if you choose wisely. It should blend well with the style of the rest of the house, depending on particular taste and personal preference, Sullivan said.
"Typically, the men would require a very comfortable, worn leather chair that screams 'masculine,' and the women want a chaise lounge, very cozy and comfortable that makes you want to curl up with a good book," she said.
If the room has a fireplace, a pair of chairs in front of it on top of a decorative rug could be an inviting focal point. What could be more perfect?
