6 reading nook ideas

With back to school season around the corner, it only seems fair that August is National Book Month. As we prepare to wind down the summer and head into the chillier months, we can’t think of a better time to build out a reading nook that makes you want to put down your phone and pick up a good book.

Keep reading for some fun reading nook ideas, and let the page turning begin. 

1. Embrace built-ins

Built-ins, which are built-in shelves, are all the rage these days and serve many purposes. Not only do they add substantial style to your home, but they make it easy to stay organized and show off your book collection. 

If you have built-ins in your living room or another room of your house, this might be the perfect place to create a reading nook. All you need to do is add some plush seating, pillows, and a basket with blankets to create space without much effort. You’ll achieve those posh home library vibes in no time. 

2. Install DIY floating shelves

Another major home trend right now — that costs a whole lot less than custom built-ins — are floating shelves. These chic shelves double as wall decor and are the perfect way to squeeze a reading nook into almost any corner of your house. All you need is to purchase some shelves and grab your tool box — no contractor or required. Find out what other home renovations you can do without a permit. 

3. Invest in comfortable seating

We all want our homes to look great, but they also need to be functional. When it comes to designing a spot in your home to dedicate to reading, spend your time looking for the perfect reading nook chair. It may take time to find the right fit and you might have to splurge on a chair to ensure it’s truly comfortable. But, if you don’t invest in comfortable seating, your reading nook will go unused. There are a lot of distractions these days that make it easy to push off reading — don’t let a bad chair give you one more reason to choose a Netflix binge over the books collecting dust on your shelves. 

4. Find a view you love

Reading can be very relaxing, especially if you create your reading nook in an area of your home you love. We love a window seat with a great view, but you may find that a cute accent chair added to your favorite room in the home does the trick. And who says great wallpaper doesn’t count as a good view? Find an area in your home that is peaceful and where you can really enjoy your surroundings, and your reading nook will become your favorite spot in no time.

5. Lean into coziness

It’s cheesy, but true: there’s nothing better than curling up with a good book on a rainy day, but with a cozy reading nook will entice you to crack open a new book, rain or shine. The good news is that you can really embrace small spaces when designing your reading nook to capture that warm, snug feeling. Add plush pillows and blankets, pull up a chair in front of the fireplace, and light a candle when you sit down for a good reading session. 

6. Carve out space in your home office or guest bedroom

If your home is short on space to create a reading nook, you can commandeer a section of your home office. In fact, this may be the ideal spot to create a reading nook, since it might be unused on nights and weekends, and it’s likely a space you already designated to be a distraction-free zone. If you frequently need to read documents or reports for work, there’s also no reason you can’t step away from your desk and enjoy your reading nook during your nine to five. 

Your guest bedroom can also work for your reading nook. Spare bedrooms usually sit unused for most of the year, so they’re naturally a quiet and tidy place to hide out. When you do have visitors, we have a feeling they’ll love taking advantage of the reading nook in their room to catch up with their summer reads. 

How much does a reading nook cost? 

How much it will cost you to build a reading nook will depend entirely on what your goals are for the space. If you need to knock down walls or renovate a room to make your reading nook dreams come to life, then you may need to spend thousands of dollars to make the space work. 

However it’s possible to create a reading nook without spending a lot of money. After all, the advantage of a reading nook is that it doesn’t have to be big — you’re not building out a new library room, so you can still manage if you have a small space.

You can start your design plans by creating a list of the supplies you already have and the ones you still need to purchase. It’s even build a reading nook for free out of what you already own or to spend a few hundred dollars. For example, you may need to buy a bookshelf, chair, foot stool, blankets, pillows, side table, lamp, and other accessories to make the space shine. Once you know what you need to buy you can create a budget for the project and can plan out how you want to allocate your funds.

Happy reading!