The great bookshelf quest!

I always seem to be on the lookout for a bookshelf. I spend months looking for the ideal balance of function and design. When I finally find one that works, I bring it home, it's instantly filled, and I have to start looking for another one. Anyway, I thought I'd share some of the better ones I found in my search.

I never said my taste was cheap (sorry!), but if you have the money, these are a few of my favorite high-end bookshelves. A&B TRE by Pallucco would be my first pick... if only I had an extra $2,000 laying around:



Since most of us do not have that kind of cash, I focused most of my search on pieces that were more affordable. I found the best options at West Elm. They were stylish, affordable and functional-- a bit more of a financial investment than what you'd spend at a place like Target, but I think they're worth it:



If that was still more than you were thinking of spending, then check out Ikea, always a great source for cheap-but-fabulous furniture. The unassembled bookcases are a great start for your own DIY projects:



There were a few other bookcases that, for one reason or another, just won't work in my apartment, but I think are still worth sharing. The first of these is this great children's house-shaped bookcase. It's not something I would normally be drawn to, but I can definitely picture this crisp white bookcase filled with brightly colored books in a little girl's room. The other bookcase at unica home is a piece of art all by itself... which means that covering it up with books would be a shame. I figured it was still worth mentioning, though, because it's just so amazing-looking:



So which one did I end up getting? Sadly, none of them. Thanks to some un-planned-for moving expenses, I ended up picking up this bargain bookshelf at Sofa Express. This ladder bookcase works well, and with a price tag of $45 I couldn't pass it up: