Inside My Pink Library Room of Dreams

Recently, I saw a trend on Instagram where people are writing as though they’ve met their younger self for a catch-up in a café. To be honest, I don’t feel brave enough to take part in this one. But, I know one thing: I’d share with my younger self that we’ve finally got the library room that we’ve dreamed of since watching Beauty and the Beast as a little girl. Yes! After my boyfriend and I moved in in late January, my home office space was a priority, since I work from home twice a week and require a decent desk setup. And, this was the perfect time to turn our box room into the library room: a place to work, and also to be surrounded by books! We’re both big readers, after all.

The goal and vision

My vision for this room was simple: abundant joy, cosiness and practicality (to a degree). I knew I wanted pink walls and dark brown woodwork, and then the concept evolved from there. A snug reading chair, plush rug underfoot for my standing desk, and endless shelves for my personal library and my notebooks and trinkets.

The paint

Choosing the perfect pink was an arduous process. Of course I sort of wanted a Farrow & Ball Setting Plaster pink, yet knowing that Farrow & Ball was out of my budget as well as being notoriously difficult to paint with, I vetoed this quickly. With that out of the way, I had a muddy medium pink in mind. Endless trips to B&Q left me with tiny sample pots of B&Q Isumi and Kyoto, Dulux Parchment Pink and Perfectly Taupe, Dorma Blush Pink… Basically, I was digging a warren of nearly-there pink paint samples.

In the end, I settled on B&Q Isumi which is utterly beautiful, a real creamy medium pink with a gentle warmth running through it.

Furniture details

Keeping with my dark wood theme, I was selective with my furniture. White furniture just feels cold to me, and I’ve been-there-done-that in my bedroom. Time for change.

The pièce de résistance is of course my beloved wall of books, housed in a few IKEA Billy bookcases. I went for one classic, wide case, and armoured it with two of the slimmer ones to create a slightly more bespoke look. Alongside my alphabetised books, this wall is exactly what I envisioned in my library! There’s even room to add another case, should I need it. (I will. I must! I’d like to add another slim one later this year.) The storage unit in front is so sweet: I’ll be using it to stash my currently reading and/or upcoming priority TBR.

I opted for a standing desk in this room, since I think the choice to sit or stand will be great for this fidgety writer. Eventually, I’ll add a walking pad here to get some extra steps and movement in – I live in cold, bleak England after all. Underfoot, I have a snug foot warmer hot water bottle, which doesn’t fit the aesthetic but is completely necessary in the winter.

Encouraged by my boyfriend, I then added a squishy reading chair to the room. Far from closing the door on this room after work, I do plan to use this room for reading as well. It took me a while (ahem, a year) to settle on a chair, but this one from Dunelm perfectly fits the space.