Books are beautiful things, but they can be used in horribly ugly ways. Columns wrapped in books, books with their spines facing inward, pages ripped from a book for wallpaperthese are design atrocities that must be stopped. A simple bookshelf, neatly filled, is a lovely thing. There's something extremely pleasing about a perfectly ordered row of books, and this is exactly what makes private libraries seem like the most luxurious of amenities. Bibliophile or not, who wouldn't want to curl up on an armchair in front of that (↑) fireplace? A Greenwich Village carriage house was converted to create this glorious double-height library, and it can be your own private den for $18M (for that price, you get the house, too).
(↑↓)In a full-floor loft at 30 Crosby Street, a den-like library was created in the middle of the apartment. It has custom built-in, floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and metallic rolling doors. It's asking $8.75 million, and it's owned by Chris Hughes, who cofounded Facebook in 2003, and Sean Eldridge, an activist financier who ran for Congress in upstate New York.
We'll let the brokerbabbe set the stage for this $9.95 million home: "The legendary Sutton Place apartment where Marietta Tree, the socialite and companion to many powerful men, once lived has been completely renovated to over 4,700 square feet of Georgian elegance by Albert Hadley." That elegance includes an emerald green library (↑) with large bay window
For $6.5 million, there's a renovated duplex on East End Avenue with a handsome light wood-paneled library (↑). It features a wood-burning fireplace and sculptural woodwork.
Contemporary art and sleek white shelves make this one (↑) of the more modern libraries on this list, even though it's located in the prewar co-op 1100 Park Avenue. It's part of a nine-room unit that's listed for $9.85 million.
Most of this $30 million, multi-level penthouse at 165 Perry Street is sleek and glassy (there are even glass floors), but the library (↑) warms things up a bit with dark wood paneling and built-in shelves (though, to be fair, it does still have glass floors). Robert De Niro apparently lived here at one time, and the price was recently reduced from $40 million.
A single-family townhouse on West 85th Street features a richly-colored study (↑) with fabric-cover walls, elaborate moldings, and built-in shelves. The six-level house dates to the 1880s.
For $70 million, one should hope that a home comes with a jaw-dropping library, and this duplex at the Pierre delivers, with a 42-foot-long library (↑) that looks out over Central Park.
The library (↑) in this beautiful Colonial Revival in Ditmas Park features custom oak built-ins, a wood-burning fireplace, and a huge bay window that looks out onto the home's massive front porch. At $1.985 million, it seems like a total steal.
And finally, the occupants of this Soho loft turned their curved foyer into a moody library, with custom floor-to-ceiling shelving (↑). It's easy to pretend the dark, heavy front door opens into the rest of your castle.
· Hey, Enough Already With This Books-as-Design Thing [Flipped]
· The 10 Most Gorgeous Private Libraries in the D.C. Area [Curbed DC]
· Enchanting Greenwich Village Townhouse Asks $18 Million [Curbed]
· Facebook Cofounder Wants $8.75M for Stylish Soho Loft [Curbed]
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