Room For More Cookbooks

My cookbooks are on my new bookshelf and I can't believe it but I actually have room for more.

Before, I didn't have adequate storage to keep my collection all in one place. It's so nice to have them together, organized and at hand. Yeah! Things are coming together.

My baking and chocolate cookbooks are the ones I use the most so I put them on the lower shelves so they're easy to reach.

Custom Cookbook Shelf

The cookbook shelf in progress.

My friend Bill is helping me build a custom bookshelf in the entryway of my new kitchen that will hold my large collection of cookbooks. I measured my stacks of cookbooks and have determined I need 32 linear feet of shelving to accommodate all of them.

The shelf will cover an entire wall and be made of ApplePly. I think it's going to look quite striking and because it extends all the way to the ceiling I actually think it makes the room feel larger.

Bill was the one who showed me ApplePly at the lumber store about a year ago and ever since I've had my heart set on using it in my kitchen. It's the best plywood you can buy - it's smooth and super strong. What I like best though is the clean striped effect on the sides of the boards. I'm not going to use any trim to cover it up. I'll just add a little butcher block oil and let the wood speak for itself.

The pretty edge of ApplePly.

Over the last two days, we've gotten a lot done. Now I just need to cut the shelves and finish the shorter shelf that will extend along the side of a base cabinet. Things are coming together thanks in large part to my helpful friend Bill.