50 Creative Ways To Incorporate Book Storage In & Around Stairs

Love books? Love stairs? These fifty unique designs make the most of that tight little cranny under your staircase. Use a block frame to hide books beneath, as they line sturdy shelves your feet walk over. Wrap a winding steel staircase around existing walls of bookshelves, immersing yourself in the reading experience. Put books within the stairs, as each level hides a few simply gorgeous reads. These creative, innovative and artistic features make the most of a good book collection and the most of awkward spaces left unutilised. Cater to stylish home décor for book lovers with these sets of book-hugging stairs and staircases.

Designer: Dreihausfrauen

Conjoining two apartments in Dusseldorf, Germany, this multi-functional white and wooden staircase lets you pick a book from beside the stairs and say hello to the neighbours. Its clever ceiling-height stretch creates a feature for two apartments and residential space-saver in one.

Designer: Maxwan

Matching the wood of the ceiling rafters, this floating staircase matches bookshelves above and below the stairs. A few drawers and a desk let you hide away and study in a light yet secluded space

Designer: Studio Mieke Meijer

Dutch designer Just Haasnoot found inspiration from industrial building photography for this floating design. Halved into two oak and steel parts, the top half carries shoes, books and ornaments; the bottom half a desk, pot plants and a space for morning coffee.

Designer: NC2 Architecture

Steep and zigzagging, this unique wooden structure lets you reach over for a read mid-thigh workout. Doubling as a feature artwork, its vertical design makes a visual impact without impinging on room space.

Designer: General Assembly

Natural and black-painted wood coalesce in a block stairway with inbuilt shelves. Hide your books and knick knacks inside, for a stylish storage option.

Designer: Veran Émilie

An innovative use of space is awarded to this conjoint bedroom, bookcase, desk and staircase. As small wooden stairs lead up to the loft, books in oscillating partitions aid a good night’s sleep.

Designer: Fujimatsu Architect

Afforded more space, this desk, bookcase and staircase alternative oozes sophistication. White plaster and varnished wood lets you stop mid-climb for a scintillating read.

Designer: Gordon Walker

Mimic the lines of your staircase with wooden partitions holding books. Hanging over a nifty desk space, this design looks kitsch and study-friendly with extra cabinets for filing.

Designer: Wild Rabbits Architects

Connecting two separate apartments, this wood and steel creation offers a library of knowledge for two sets of tenants. The bottom and top of the staircase allow both dwellers to make the space their own.

Pleasing to the eye and book collection, this ascending wooden structure houses reads between each level of stair. The result is a polished, multi-functional feature without the slightest trace of clutter.

Designer: Marc Koehler Architects

A white pyramid bookcase doubles as a stairway to heaven in this minimalist design. A large chandelier dangles over, adding sophistication with a difference.

Photographer: Pia Winther

Bookcases are not just for books. This clever under-the-stairs unit hangs portraits, sit lamps and houses cabinets for all your storage needs.

Designer: Farrow Arcaro Design

Make a bookcase level with your staircase, making two seem like one. White and wood tricks the eye into seeing simplicity, whilst hiding display fans, kettles and novels.

Designer: Koch Architects

A rustic feel can be achieved with a conjoined staircase and library. Framed by wooden rafters, walls and railings, it evokes a wood cabin with a twist.

Designer: Kerr Construction

Abstract storage spaces combine art and functionality. Using two different wooden shades, books, ornaments and stationery are displayed, as a family staircase pops over the top.

Designer: Stephen Moser Architect

Make your staircase seem minimal, with overlapping library shelving. Simple Scandinavian panels hide books and vases, offering a seat to visitors before the climb.

Visualizer: Design+Weld

Fit for an art gallery, this winding, floating London staircase looks ethereal beside a column of books. Aspiring to a glass-railed loft, glossy white floors and concrete walls give it added prominence.

Visualizer: Jianxiong Liu

A library concept is the perfect avenue for stair ideas. This proposed concept creates a virtual treehouse complete with curved wooden bannisters, slatted railings and building-frame bookshelves.

Visualizer: Design+Weld

Don’t have room for a full-scale library? Extend the space you live in with simple white stairs framed by a wall of books.

Designer: Dekleva Gregoric Arhitekti

Another great use of space, these wooden blocks house books within steps. A block black desk gains access at an arm’s reach.

Designer: Process

Whichever way you look at this staircase, it serves two purposes. Books, ornaments and trinkets are offered from the side, back and front; an artpiece and staircase from the short road up.

Designer: L'atelier miel

Long wooden panes create a stable staircase with a few hidden inlets. A drinks cabinet to the side works well in the corner.

Designer: Studio Farris

The Jenga fan can’t go past this decidedly different design. Leading up to an office, interlocking blocks create a canopy over the entrance space.

Architect: Jochen Specht

Maintain simplicity by slotting colourful reads within wood. This light-coloured solution lets the bookcase be the hero, while the room fades into the background in muted, natural tones.

Visualizer: Studio 25

The die-hard hipster has everything they want in this under-stair library. As a metal bike hangs beside glass railings, simple nut bolts lead to a triangular space dotted with trinkets.

Designer: Moon Hoon

Wide, space-filled stairs leave room for a library. This ascending set marks the stepping zone with blocks; a place for books and filing in the spaces inbetween.

Designer: PAUL CREMOUX studio

A feature wall bookcase makes an inspirational interior. Framed by pastel and Scandinavian finds, a white metal staircase zigzags over a high wall and wooden column filled with great reads.

Designer: One Girl Interiors

Only have a few books to display? This small set of stairs keeps it simple, as a wooden bookcase fills an awkward space with a nifty solution.

Designer: Platform 5 Architects

Create a piece of art with an unexpected shape. This wooden staircase mimics the stairs – atop an almost-full wall bookcase.

Designer: Andrea Mosca

Mimicking stairs, this compartmentalised bookcase completes the ultimate rumpus room. White walls, floor and a mirror hold white and mustard couches amidst two sets of wall-held reads.

Designer: Drexler Guinand Jauslin

Go for the smaller option in this mini wooden bookcase bathed in white. A juxtaposing staircase and railing emphasise the build-up to a dreamy reading session.

Designer: Rebecca Naughtin Architect

For the staircase with no space, two walls of books will do the trick. A simple design with sloping elements affords enough room for a library to shine.

Designer: Chioco Design

The high-ceilinged home adds a touch of luxury with a top-to-toe bookshelf. Metal railings echo a leaning ladder and window out to a view.

Buy It: NC2 Architecture

Inject the Scandinavian with an exposed brick bookcase. Slatted wooden shelving mirrors the staircase for an integrated experience.

Designer: Design42

Create an aura of mystery with a book-lined stairway. Shuttered from adjoining rooms with an inside window, debate and dining is sought in the inlet below.

Visualizer: Design+Weld

Minimalism reigns king in this steel-frame structure. Its thin panels hold stairs to the right, a place for ornaments to the left.

Designer: Oliver Fourny

Suspended by cascading iron wires, this white and wooden staircase uses art to effect, without taking up space. A high bookcase to the side rises below the top step, for an interesting walk up and down the levels.

Designer: Craft Design

Jutting out beside the bookcase, this set of stairs creates an optical illusion for guests. Wide enough to fit a person walking beside it, the destination is a hidden sleepout atop a storage box.

Visualizer: IFJ Architecture

Skilfully utilise a cramped corner with a bed beside the staircase. Interspersed between each level, a row of books decorate a room swathed all in wood.

Source: El Meuble

An attic roof comes with its challenges. Meet them at full throttle with a sloping bookcase that walks beside guests on their journey down.

Designer: Siemasko + Verbridge

A two-storey bookcase has the perfect partner in this stairwell. Bound by wood and iron railings, a journey up or down greets the eye with walls of books and ladders, as if by chance.

Designer: Sergey Makhno Architects

Disrupt tradition with a black bookcase. Floating wooden stairs are supported by black pillars underneath, making two structures seem like one.

Designer: Stone Horse Design

The smaller library is hidden beneath this fusion staircase. Mid-wooden tones keep it industrial; thick steel railings industrial.

Designer: Edouard Brunet & François Martens Photographer: Dennis De Smet

Geometry plays with these stairs folding into squares and hexagons. A wooden storage space provides a seeming platform, grounding the design.

Designer: Jarmund/Vigsnæs AS Arkitekter MNAL

Fly into the sky with this bookcase-staircase hung as if by balloons. Two-stringed ropes pull up each level, while a large Chinese lantern illuminates the space.

Designer: Marc Cowan

Don’t need a staircase? Put your books in ascending display, for an easy pick of the right title.

Designer: Papazian R.A. - doon Architecture

Contemporary with a classic twist, this structure provides enough room for ample reads. Clad in white upon a wooden floor, its light hue doesn’t dominate the space.

Designer: Zminkowska Boise Architects

Lead up to a nook with books beside and beneath the stairs. Its comfy end point lights up pages with four beautiful French windows.

Designer: Stephen Moser Architect

Reward a stair climb with a few ravishing reads. This simplistic bookcase hides under the railings, maximising white space.

Source: Lighting Design International

Three walls of books remain light and airy, on walls lit by LEDs. Matching furniture and a block staircase provide several white spaces for book immersion.