Wall Storage for Highlighting Books

$2.99 Ikea Molger hook racks

We store our kids' books in a few different locations in the house. There are two large bins in the family room that I rotate, and we keep our favorites (that is, the ones I don't mind reading over and over and over at bedtime/naptime) in a bookcase in Margaret's room. I'd also been looking for an inexpensive storage piece to keep a few books handy by James' rocker in his room.

I really love the idea of using $3.99 Ikea Bekvam spice racks hung on the wall like this or on the side of an existing furniture piece like this. Our nearest Ikea is 4.5 hours away, though.

I also love book slings, but my craft room is currently destroyed as it's become a drop zone while we're doing renovations on the house, and, frankly, I don't have the time or inclination to sew at the moment.

I've also seen rain guttering used for book storage, but I don't much like the look of it.

We've used baskets and such in the past, and they work fine, but I really wanted the books' covers to be visible, and the storage to be up on the wall.

Imagine my glee when I found out my husband had a political convention to attend just minutes from an Ikea. I was so there. The Bekvams were our first stop. I raced around the kitchen department, then the storage department, and... nothing. I finally asked an employee where to find them. "Pinterest?" she asked. Who knew that blessed site would be my downfall? They'd apparently been sold out since the idea went viral. The employee suggested using a picture rail they had in stock. That would have worked fine, but it was much more expensive than the spice racks, wouldn't fit our wall as well, and really wasn't the look I was going for.

I. was. bummed. We continued with our shopping trip, and just as we were about to leave, I spotted this in the bathroom department. This, I could make work. And it was $1 cheaper than the Bekvam! I bought 5.

When I got home, I nervously took my tools to James' room, sure there was some flaw to this solution I was missing. I was especially worried the books would flop forward. But, my friends, they worked! In fact, I love the look of them even more than the Bekvams, and they function just the same. Behold.

They comfortably hold the width of one thick board book, 5-7 paperback picture books, or 3-4 hardback picture books. I think I'll paint them a chocolate brown to match the existing mural in James' room. I installed the other two units I purchased in Margaret's room, but pictures of those will have to wait until I get a few more projects finished in there.