Hey friends. I'm moving out on my own for the first time and will finally have an opportunity to set up my manga in one room as a library. My question for you physical collectors is:

1. How do you organize your collection? (Ex: Custom wall shelves/Bookcases (brand)/DVD Bookcases)

2. Where did you purchase your set up? (Ex: Hardware store DIY/Ikea/Wal Mart/Amazon)

3. Pics?

I have over 1000 manga now and it doesn't fit in my current space so there are books everywhere... shoe boxes/plastic bins/mismatched bookshelves.

I want a set up that looks cohesive. I was thinking Billy Bookshelves? But the holes are an awkward height that doesn't quite create a perfect shelf for manga. I was thinking DVD shelves but then I might have to get too many?

Any help/suggestions more than welcome.

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I used to have it all displayed in bookshelves that are built into the wall. It looked very sharp and got lots of compliments since the entire wall of the basement was great for storage and display. Unfortunately communal living and displaying manga didn't work out for me and a few of my titles wandered off so I now keep them in a big tupperware box.

Installing bookshelves into one's wall is probably not the easiest task, so any bookcase would do the job. If you're artistic I think it would be cool to get a bookshelf and paint it yourself. Another idea is I once had a cool diamond-shaped CD case from Ikea that was fixed to my wall. Something like that (which I can't find pictures of using google) in book-size would be neat, but potentially not sturdy enough for heavy things like tons of books.

Oh no I'm sorry some stuff went missing! I would worry in communal living, but it's just me and my boyfriend so I won't have that issue.

I've seen some interesting DIYS to make Ikea Bookshelves LOOK like it's built in, which might be best since we will be renting. On the other hand my boyfriend is pretty handy so I'm not totally against shelves.

The only thing holding me back from Ikea Bookshelves is where they have the holes for shelves doesn't make use of maximum manga holding. It leaves some shelves really small and some really big. I just want it to look uniform. :/ I wish they had the holding holes for the shelves from top to bottom and then it wouldn't be an issue.

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My "anime room" has several bookcases built from Walmart kits that were approx. 25$ each. They come in black, white, or brown, if I recall. (They were purchased a few years ago so I'm not sure if this has changed). The shelves are adjustable, and while they are not all of exact uniform height, this has worked out well for me because I use the larger spaces for artbooks, oversized volumes, and Japanese manga magazines. The different heights have also allowed me to be creative and fill in space with figures, plushies or other collectibles.
I also have some shelves with glass doors that I purchased on sale at a furniture outlet a few years ago, and rigged them up with lights that you tap to light up the various areas - I use this space for figures and other merchandise, and it's really nice because I don't have to dust them.

Best of luck to you!

Just an update on my collection! I actually ended up using the Billy Bookcases from Ikea.
The new Billys are deeper than the Billys from the 90s (which I used to have) and have holes all along the sides so you can put shelves wherever you like and at whatever height.

I was able to fit all 1000+ on two bookshelves!
Had to buy two extra shelves per book case. So 7 shelves per book case that fits two shelves for extra large books (Kodansha/Yen Press) and 5 shelves for regular sized (Viz/Tokyopop)

There are two rows per shelf and each shelf can hold about 80 books.
I split individual series in two so I wouldn't have to hide any series behind others. It doesn't LOOK as nice but it's more efficient.

I can stack them in a row with the front cover out and I can fit about 14 regular volumes this way.

I'm kinda meticulous with stuff like this so hopefully this helps anyone as curious as me!

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