A home library can add elegance and sophistication to an interior. More so, I have always been drawn to bookshelves that are built around a door, as they tend to add such sophistication to a space, while also allowing you to make use of dead space in your interior.

A doorway framed by shelves or bookcases can have such an impressive effect on a space, especially if you put some effort into styling it nicely. You can combine books with other things and accessories you want to put on display. Play around with it to find the right balance to accommodate storage and accessories on display without it feeling cluttered.

Incorporate different materials and find a stylish and creative setting for your doorway bookcase. Have a look at these beautiful built-in bookshelf ideas around a door for inspiration on how to plan and style them.

Custom built-ins in a dark grey color decorate a majestic doorway

The wide doorway connecting the dining room and living room in this majestic Swedish apartment is adorned by a custom doorway bookcase that fills the whole wall. The contrast of the dark grey shelves with the white walls that can be seen through the open doorway is very powerful and contributes to the minimal black-and-white interior aesthetic in this apartment.

The base cabinets are deeper, providing lots of space to store things away, while the open shelves rest on top of them. The big shelf is decorated with a mix of carefully selected accessories in monotone colors and piles of books facing backward for a modest yet elegant effect against the dark grey color.

Photographed by Alen Cordic for Bjurfors

A creative doorway bookcase underneath a sloped ceiling

In this light-flooded attic apartment with beautiful exposed wood beams, all the space up until the ceiling is filled up with a custom-built bookshelf including closed storage modules on the bottom.

A custom bookcase is a great way to fill up the unused space in awkward corners and this doorway bookcase that fills the entire wall is painted in the same paint color as the bedroom door itself for a beautiful effect that accentuates the beautiful green bedroom wall color peeking through.

The home library includes a mixture of books, an impressive hanging plant, and a selection of vases. The shelves even contain an integrated glass cabinet for storing wine glasses conveniently next to the dining table.

Styled by Cream and Navy, photographed by Anders Bergstedt for Alvhem

A bookshelf-around-door layout with an integrated mirror

This beautiful living room with a light grey wall color with blue undertones features a beautiful custom doorway bookcase that includes closed cabinets on the bottom on which the top shelves rest.

Since the original crown molding on the ceiling can’t be seen anymore, moldings were applied to the top of the bookshelves for an integrated effect. The paint color used on the bookcase is the same as the wall color in this beautiful interior and the mirror on the back of the biggest compartment is such a smart idea to make the space look bigger.

The left part of the built-in shelves is used for interior objects and to store books, while the area on the right is used for glasses. I imagine the section with the mirror would work great for displaying bottles as well, functioning as an integrated bar in your bookcase.

via Stadshem

A bookshelf with storage space around the bedroom door

The doorway connecting the dining room with the bedroom in this turn-of-the-century apartment is adorned by a beautiful custom built-in doorway bookshelf that extends wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling for an impressive effect in this majestic interior.

The bottom of each of the bookcase modules includes a closed storage compartment with paneled white doors, which are paired up with open shelves on the top that display a combination of books, accessories, and storage boxes for keeping small stuff.

The interior color palette of both the rooms is black and white combined with natural tones in the wooden furniture. The paper of the aged books adds beige tones and by placing the extra colorful books the other way around, you create a serene color palette that fits the interior.

I love the way the small oak seedling pops out on the shelves, adding a subtle green touch in between all the neutral colors present in the bookcase.

Styled by Greydeco and photographed by Janne Olander, for Stadshem

Open shelves on the top half of the wall decorate a large doorway

Even though the furniture is placed against the bottom half of the doorway wall in this living room, the top half is decorated with white wall shelves with white brackets for an impressive effect in the interior.

The top shelf is used to store books, while the lower shelves have small boxes and a few delicate decor pieces in natural colors. The open shelves blend into the wall in a subtle manner, making the high-contrast items in the interior like the blue door and the cognac leather butterfly chair stand out in a more powerful way.

via Stadshem

Balcony doorway bookshelves fully integrated into the room

The built-in shelves going over the balcony doorway in this living room with white walls go over into a custom bench with a wall pillow, which is such a smart idea.

The solution combines closed cabinets on the bottom with open shelves above it and a long wall shelf extending wall to wall over the doorway. By doing so, a lot of shelf space is created without taking up too much floor space.

The white open shelves integrate nicely with the white wall and the white window and door frames, which are complemented with white furniture and white curtains for a bright look that makes this small room look bigger.

via Fantastic Frank

A half doorway bookcase with books and antique finds on display

While built-in shelves that extend over an entire wall can have such an impressive effect on an interior, this is not possible in smaller spaces. Doorway bookcases can be a great solution for small space living and studio apartments, however, since you can utilize the doorway wall for additional storage opportunities.

This beautiful white bookshelf extends over the doorway, yet doesn’t continue on the other wall, making it a smaller solution that takes advantage of the available ceiling height.

The shelves themselves are filled with books with their backs faced away for a calmer (yet more confusing) look that is enhanced with a beautiful selection of vintage finds on display on the top shelves. By filling some shelves entirely with books and others with accessories only, you create an interesting look that is finished off with the cute antique table lamp on one of the shelves.

via Historiska Hem

Built-in bookshelves connected by a single top shelf over the door

If you don’t want to add too much shelf space above the door, you can connect two built-in bookshelves on each side of the doorway with a top plate that gives the doorway bookcase its integrated look into the space, without having to construct the module above the door.

This beautiful living room with a warm grey wall color features shelving next to the doorway painted in the same color as the wall. This grey-on-grey color palette accentuates the white French doors leading up to the other room. The shelves are filled with boxes and objects in darker colors that stand out and add a lovely contrast to the space.

via Bjurfors

Built-in bookshelves in a corner layout above French doors

This spacious green living room has a creative bookshelf solution that is planned out in the corner of the room and extends over the doorway leading up to the bedroom. The built-ins are painted in the same color as the window and door frames in this majestic and characterful interior. It’s a mint green color that is a bit darker than the walls which results in a unique effect in the space.

The built-in bookshelves are used to organize books and display accessories, while the shelving above the door is used as an elegant magazine display showcasing the book covers for a lighter look.

via Historiska Hem

A sage green dining room with wall shelving extending over the door

This combined living room and dining room features open shelving that extends above the doorway in the dining area, and a blank wall above the sofa. Planning out the shelves like this allows for a visual distinction between the two functional areas in the space.

Open shelving is typically a bit easier to install around a door than bookcases and the final result can be just as impressive. In the case of this apartment, I like the way the white shelving and the white doorway stand out against the sage-green living room walls.

via Alvhem

A doorway bookshelf in the same grey color as the walls

One of the walls in this dark grey living room has been turned into an amazing feature wall with a wide bookshelf design that fills the entire wall and the area above the door. The beautiful collection of colorful books and a careful selection of art and decor objects decorate the shelf in a wonderful way.

Styled by Bon Interior, photographed by Maria Sahlander, for sale via Bjurfors

Bedroom nooks and alcove beds are a great solution when you just don’t have the square footage available to plan out all the different functionalities needed in a space. When you live in a studio apartment, for example, you need to include both living and sleeping areas in one main bedroom, which can be quite a challenge.

You can create a bed nook in an alcove available in the floor plan, design the room layout from scratch to include a nook, or create one with the formation of your storage space. Separate the area with curtains and in no time, you have created a cozy nook that can be used to sleep, sit and watch tv, or as a reading nook.

If you are wondering if a bed nook is a fitting solution for your room, take a look at the elegant space-saving bedroom solutions in the list below.

A cozy nook in a studio apartment with a different wall color

The bed nook in this sage green apartment is the perfect solution to make the most out of the floor plan. At night, you can close the curtains for privacy and light blocking and during the day you can open them up to enjoy the open floorplan to the fullest.

The bed nook has been painted in a neutral grey wall color, setting the nook apart from the rest of the sage grey-green living space.

via Kvarteret Makleri

A closet bed nook that matches the historic studio apartment details

Alcove beds are usually built into the wall of small spaces, yet the idea behind this beautiful studio apartment design is centered around a custom solution that is both aesthetically pleasing and functional. Since the mattress fits exactly in the customized space, there is no need for a headboard and the shelving above the bed is perfect to store books and display accessories.

You could create a similar setup in a child’s room as a bedroom or reading nook and the other doors in the structure could include a wardrobe or bookcase. The possibilities with a beautiful solution like this are endless.

via Entrance Makleri

A small bedroom space inside a nook including storage space

When you don’t have much space available, like in this small apartment, you might want to combine the bed nook with a place to store your clothes. This elegant solution with the wardrobe built above the end of the bed makes the bed nook even smaller, yet it also creates an even cozier setup since the wardrobe also functions as a visual separator.

The nook is decorated with a white wall lamp that stands out against the off-white walls, striped terracotta bedding, and a linen bed skirt covering the side of the mattress. The gallery wall decorating the nook follows the lines of the wardrobe solution which gives the space an elegant touch.

via Entrance Makleri

A bedroom nook in between two walk-in-closets

This small apartment has two walk-in closets built-in, creating a nook that fits the bed exactly. The ceiling between the two closets is lowered, making the nook space even more cozy and the two closets more connected with each other.

Wall nooks can work in large bedrooms as well, as you can place the bed in between two storage shelves or modules, creating a cozy spot for sleeping. You can place the bed parallel to the wall just like in this example, or use it perpendicular to the wall allowing for nightstands to fit next to the bed.

via Innerstadtspecialisten

Large white curtains add elegance to an alcove bed

The alcove bed in this white apartment blends into the rest of the space and features beautiful white linen curtains on each side to add privacy.

The mixture of fabric on the bed matches the neutral color palette with camel tints in the rest of the apartment and the art print above the bed finishes the decor off perfectly.

via Alvhem

Work with an interior designer to plan an alcove bed in your remodel

This bed nook solution requires a bit more resources, as it needs to be planned when doing a remodel, yet it can be such a nice solution if you have the opportunity to redo and transform a small apartment from its core.

The white walls and white textiles look very fresh, bright, and minimal and the bedside table fits perfectly on the newly created wall separating the bed from the rest of the apartment.

via Alvhem

An alcove bed accentuated with a medium grey wall color

The bedroom in this small apartment is located in the alcove created in between doorways. Since the bed nook is more shallow than the actual bed size, the walls of the bed nook are painted in a medium grey wall color, which visually separates the bedroom area from the rest of the space.

via 55Kvadrat

A bedroom in a nook with an open doorway

This bedroom used to be a separate room, yet by taking out the doors and creating an open space, it becomes a nook-like room that comfortably fits the bed, wardrobe, and a big mirror that reflects daylight into this low-lit area.

The white walls and textiles are enhanced with camel and brown tones just like in the adjacent living room decor.

via Alvhem

A bed nook next to the kitchen

This small bed nook is located behind the kitchen, suggesting that it once was a pantry or something similar. The small bed fits comfortably in the tiny room, allowing for a bedside table to still fit next to the bed.

The all-white color palette with a few beige accent pieces in the textiles makes for a very light palette that compensates for the lack of daylight in the bed nook.

via Alvhem

Alcove beds are great solutions for larger rooms as well

This large one-bedroom apartment has an alcove space with a built-in wardrobe solution that was planned into the room remodel. The large bed nook becomes part of the living space when open, yet is a separate room when closed off.

The bed is made with a mixture of white and beige textiles that match the textile combination on the sofa in the main room.

via Alvhem

A tone-on-tone bed nook in an interior designer’s home

In her small home, interior designer Josefin Haag found the perfect place for a bedroom inside a niche space in the layout. The walls of the apartment are painted in an elegant off-white color, which makes the white textiles in the bed nook stand out in such a nice way. The nook is enhanced with wall-to-wall shelving and floor-to-ceiling curtains for a finished effect that matches the style, materials, and palette of the rest of the apartment.

Wall nooks can also be a great solution for a main bedroom in a larger apartment, especially if you like to cozy up and sleep in a tighter space. If you want to be completely separated from the rest of the space, you can even add curtains just like in this example.

Styled by Josefin Haag for Fantastic Frank

An attic nook turned into a cozy sleeping nook

Sloped ceilings in attic bedrooms create natural nook spaces that are ideal for placing a bed underneath. Lower ceiling height doesn’t bother you while you are asleep, which makes the bed the ideal functionality for utilizing these lower areas.

The half-rounded window in this attic apartment is the perfect spot for a single bed and the placement of the white wardrobe makes the sleeping space even more narrow and cozy. The gallery wall on next to the bed finalizes the look perfectly and adds darker colors to the otherwise beige and white palette in the bedroom area.

Styled by Nouvel Interior, photographed by Maria Sahlander for Bjurfors

Add a bedroom or guest room in a tiny room that just fits the bed

When the interior designer created an additional wall with a window to separate the kitchen area in this small apartment, a nook-like bedroom was created that fits a double bed just barely.

The bedroom is surrounded by windows on each side of the bed, making the room appear less cramped. You enter the room at the foot of the bed, which has been decorated with a beautiful mixture of linen sheets and throw pillows.

This type of room division planned when remodeling is also great to create an extra guest room for when you have family over.

via Stadshem

A sleeping nook with white curtains and storage furniture under the bed

A white curtain on each side of the doorway creates a beautiful and elegant separation from this bedroom towards the rest of the studio apartment. The bed is placed on top of storage furniture (this could work with drawers, cupboards, or open shelving) and covered with a white fabric curtain that matches the white look of the interior.

Even though this nook doesn’t have a window or direct daylight, the white walls and white fabrics give it a light appearance.

Styled by Bon Interior, photographed by Jens Eliasson for Bjurfors

A bed nook with a gallery wall and wall bookshelf

This nook includes a gallery wall above the bed with storage space and a wall shelf for books right underneath the ceiling, which doesn’t disturb you while lounging in this cozy corner.

Styled by Gärde, photographed by Stork via Historiska Hem