Up next in 10
How To Create a Cozy Reading Nook - 3 WAYS!
6K views
Jul 9, 2025
📚✨ Create your dream reading nook! In this video, I’ll show you how to turn any corner of your home into a cozy, inviting space perfect for curling up with a good book. Whether you have a small apartment or a spacious house, these simple tips and creative ideas will help you design a nook that’s beautiful, functional, and oh-so-relaxing. | CHAPTERS | 00:00 Intro 00:50 The Essentials 03:01 The Cozy Corner 06:12 The Cozy Window Seat 09:07 The Cozy Canopy 12:26 Styling 13:55 Outro | LINKS |* Best Seating for a Cozy Corner COLAMY Sherpa Accent Chair with Storage Ottoman Set - https://amzn.to/4lHx6St Sofa Accent Chair, 33" Reading Chair - https://amzn.to/406pkcK 49" Chaise Lounge Corduroy Fabric - https://amzn.to/4nJTM6G
View Video Transcript
0:03
Hi, it's Linda Diane from diannecor.com.
0:06
In this video, I'm going to share with
0:08
you three ways to create a cozy reading
0:10
nook in your home. Whether you are an
0:13
avid reader or you just want a place to
0:16
unwind and escape from all the busyiness
0:19
that's happening in your home and just
0:21
scroll on your phone or work on your
0:23
laptop, this video is going to have an
0:27
idea that's going to work for you. Now,
0:29
creating a cozy nook is really simple
0:32
and you can style it up a variety of
0:34
ways, but there are a few essentials
0:36
that make the cozy reading nook work.
0:39
And you're going to need these no matter
0:41
which option you choose. So, let's jump
0:44
in and talk about the essentials, and
0:45
then I'll share with you three different
0:47
ways to create a cozy reading nook in
0:49
your home. So, let's start with the
0:52
essentials. Number one is that you need
0:54
a place where you can at least stretch
0:56
out and reposition yourself. So, you
0:59
want your seating area to be large
1:00
enough so that you can actually change
1:02
positions and get comfortable because
1:05
this may be a space where you're going
1:06
to be spending multiple hours at a time
1:09
in. If you want to sit there and read
1:11
for maybe 2 hours, odds are you're not
1:14
going to sit in the same position the
1:16
whole time, right? So, you want to make
1:18
sure that the seating that you choose
1:22
allows for you to have that flexibility.
1:25
Number two is you want a place where you
1:27
can hold a drink or a snack. Now, this
1:29
does not have to be an elaborate setup,
1:32
usually with a reading nook. This is
1:33
just a small little side table or tray
1:36
table, but we'll get into those options
1:38
a little bit later. But for sure, you
1:40
want to have a place where you can set
1:42
down your book at the very least. A
1:45
snack, a coffee, an iced tea, something
1:48
like that. You need some sort of
1:50
horizontal surface that's stable where
1:53
you can set some items on. Number three
1:55
is task lighting. So, by this I mean
1:59
your task in this zone is to be able to
2:02
read or work on a device. So, you need
2:05
light that is sort of directional and
2:08
aimed directly towards your seating
2:10
area. There are a few different ways
2:12
that we can go about doing this, and
2:13
again, we'll discuss that with each of
2:15
the options, but for sure, you need some
2:18
type of task lighting around this
2:20
reading nook zone. If you have dimmable
2:23
or adjustable lighting, that's going to
2:25
be even better. And number four, you're
2:28
going to want to have some nice soft
2:31
cushions and pillows and possibly some
2:33
throw blankets to make it really, really
2:37
comfortable in that space. You want it
2:39
to be warm and inviting and cozy and
2:42
nice plush textures and pillows are
2:46
going to not only provide you with
2:47
support and warmth, but they're going to
2:49
add all of that extra style that you're
2:52
looking for to your reading nook. So,
2:54
now that we've gotten the essentials out
2:55
of the way, let's jump into the three
2:58
ways to create a cozy reading nook in
3:00
your home. Number one is the cozy
3:03
corner. Now, the cozy corner you can
3:06
place in just about any room in your
3:08
home. So, whether it's your living room,
3:11
your bedroom, a home office, you can
3:15
even create a cozy corner at the base of
3:18
a stairway, or even a playroom. There
3:20
are a lot of opportunities in a home to
3:23
create a cozy corner for you to be able
3:26
to read in. This space is really going
3:29
to be defined by the junction of two
3:33
walls, right? So, where your two walls
3:36
meet perpendicularly and they create the
3:39
corner, this is what is defining your
3:42
nook area. So, let's talk about the best
3:45
furniture choices if you're going to
3:47
create a cozy corner. a chair and an
3:51
ottoman, an oversized armchair, a lounge
3:55
chair, a chase, a papaon chair, or a
4:01
rocking chair is going to be your best
4:03
choice for a cozy corner. These are all
4:07
pieces of seating furniture that are
4:09
going to give you that ability to sort
4:12
of move around and reposition yourself.
4:15
They're large enough for one person to
4:18
really feel comfortable and luxuriate.
4:21
They aren't necessarily made for two
4:23
people, although you can always create a
4:25
cozy corner with two chairs, but for the
4:28
most part, it's usually only one sort of
4:30
piece of furniture. It's a little
4:32
hideaway and nook for one person at a
4:35
time. And all of these types of
4:36
furniture would work wonderfully in a
4:38
cozy corner. The best lighting options
4:41
for a cozy corner are going to be a
4:43
floor lamp, wall sconces, or a table
4:47
lamp. The best side table options for a
4:50
cozy corner sort of run the gamut. You
4:53
can choose just about anything. So, you
4:56
just want to make sure that you're going
4:57
to keep it small so that is not taking
4:59
up too much space. Really, it's your
5:03
piece of seating furniture that you
5:04
choose. So, your chair, your chase, uh
5:07
you know, whatever it is, that's going
5:09
to be your largest element in this
5:11
space. And then the side table is just
5:15
going to be supplementary to that. So,
5:17
look for something that's like a small
5:19
round end table. A side table with maybe
5:24
a charging station worked into it. A
5:27
tiered side table is also another
5:29
choice. A C-shaped side table is really
5:33
great if you have a smaller space to
5:35
work with. So, if you do not have the
5:38
room to set yourself too far away from
5:40
the corner, like your furniture and your
5:42
table lamp is really pushed into the
5:44
corner because you don't have a lot of
5:45
space around you, a C-shaped table is
5:48
going to be best. Those are the ones
5:50
that will tuck underneath your furniture
5:53
and really slide right up to you.
5:56
Another option is a narrow rectangular
5:59
side table or even a TV tray table.
6:04
Specifically, the ones that are
6:06
collapsible so that they can kind of
6:08
fold down and tuck away out of the way
6:10
when you need the extra space. Number
6:13
two is the cozy window seat. Now, you do
6:16
not have to have a built-in window seat
6:19
to do this. In fact, you will have more
6:22
flexibility if you don't have a built-in
6:25
window seat. Now, in contrast to the
6:28
cozy corner where the corner is defining
6:30
your nook, here it is going to be the
6:33
window that defines your nook. Your
6:36
seating area will be placed directly
6:38
under the window. And ideally, it should
6:41
span the entire width of the window as
6:43
well. Some homes have built-in window
6:46
seats or built-in like bay window seats
6:49
as an architectural feature. And if your
6:52
home has that, you want to make sure
6:54
that you go ahead and add in the cushion
6:57
padding for your window seat. That's
6:59
going to be really key for your comfort.
7:02
But if you do not have a built-in window
7:04
seat, these are the furniture options
7:06
that you're going to look for. A bench,
7:10
chase, seti,
7:13
banket,
7:14
or a love seat are going to be the best
7:17
choices when you're creating a cozy
7:21
window seat, reading nook. Your best
7:24
lighting options are going to be either
7:27
wall sconces or a pendant light or a
7:31
mini chandelier light. So whether you
7:34
have that built-in setback window seat,
7:37
your wall sconces would sort of be on
7:39
either side of you facing in or if you
7:43
are building out your own window seat
7:45
and you're placing like a set tee in
7:47
front of your window or you're placing a
7:49
chase in front of your window, you would
7:51
put the wall sconces on either side, but
7:55
they're going to be facing out into your
7:56
room. Either way, flanking your window
8:00
seat with lighting is really your best
8:02
option.
8:03
Also, you can go with a pendant light
8:06
that can hang down directly over your
8:08
seating area, or you can swap out that
8:11
pendant light for like a mini chandelier
8:13
as well. Your best side table options
8:17
when you're going with the cozy window
8:19
seat are actually going to be a tray
8:22
that you can just place on the seat
8:25
itself. Or you can go with a very small
8:29
round side table or even a stool.
8:32
Sometimes a C-shaped end table will work
8:35
here as well depending upon whether or
8:38
not you have like open legs at the
8:40
bottom. So, if you have some like
8:42
built-in drawers or your window seat is
8:44
built in, you might not have the space
8:46
to slide the legs of a C-shaped table
8:48
underneath. In this case, I would go
8:51
with the tray or I would go with the
8:53
small round side table. But if you do
8:56
have something like you just putting a,
8:58
you know, a bench that has four legs
9:00
there or you have a seti or a love seat
9:03
where you can still use that C-shaped
9:05
table, then go for that. The third
9:08
option is the cozy canopy. Now, this is
9:11
something that can be done indoors or
9:13
outdoors, and it's defined by your
9:17
overhead covering. So, this could be a
9:20
canopy, a tent, an umbrella, a sail
9:25
shade, or even the top of an egg chair.
9:29
It's this covered area that is really
9:32
defining the nook. And so with that,
9:36
these are the furniture choices that
9:38
you're going to go for. Your best indoor
9:40
furniture options for the cozy canopy
9:43
are going to be a dayb bed, a floor
9:47
mattress, a papaon chair, a floor
9:50
pillow, a round chase lounge, or an egg
9:55
chair. For the most part, you're looking
9:57
for pieces of furniture that are sort of
10:00
more squat. They're low to the ground.
10:04
They're a little bit wide. This is why
10:06
you can get away with like a giant floor
10:08
pillow or even a pile of pillows.
10:10
Sometimes you can use those sort of
10:12
convertible day beds that sort of fold
10:15
up into a chair and fold down into a
10:18
bed. All of these are really great
10:20
options if you want to do the canopy
10:22
because you need the head space for the
10:24
canopy. And so the lower to the ground
10:26
that you are, the easier that this is
10:28
going to work because you're going to be
10:30
hanging that canopy inside the house
10:32
from the ceiling. So you're going to
10:34
have a little bit of a drop height going
10:36
on anyway. And then usually your canopy
10:38
is going to fan out. So by the time you
10:40
get to a height where you have the
10:42
maneuverability in the room that you
10:44
need, you're already sort of lower to
10:46
the ground. And so it makes sense for
10:48
you to lower your seating down to the
10:50
ground as well. Now, when it comes to
10:52
the indoor canopy, we most often see
10:54
this with kids rooms. This is an easy
10:58
way to create a little cozy nook for a
11:00
kid. Whether it's meant for reading or
11:03
just meant for playing, kids love these
11:06
little canopy areas, but you can
11:08
certainly do one for an adult as well.
11:10
If you have a dayb bed or if you have
11:12
like a papaon chair, you can set this
11:15
same thing up in your home for an adult.
11:18
Now, if you want to create this cozy
11:20
canopy outside, here are the best
11:22
furniture options. A dayb bed with a
11:24
retractable canopy, an egg chair, a
11:28
papaon chair, a club chair, a hammock, a
11:33
porch swing, or a bench. The best way to
11:36
light a cozy canopy reading nook is
11:40
going to be with string lights, fairy
11:42
lights, or curtain lights. And the best
11:45
side table options are going to be a
11:48
small round side table or a stool or you
11:52
can go with a tray for this. Uh wall
11:56
sconces may work, but odds are your
12:00
canopy or your umbrella, whatever
12:02
overhead covering you have is probably
12:05
going to get in the way of that lighting
12:08
unless you put it really really low to
12:09
the ground. So, it's really better to
12:11
just utilize some sort of string
12:14
lighting that you can string along
12:16
either the trim of the canopy or the
12:18
inside of the canopy roof so that you
12:22
have this illuminated space underneath
12:25
the canopy. And then, of course, no
12:27
matter which option you choose when it
12:30
comes to styling this up, think about
12:32
things like small area rugs underneath
12:36
your space. Add in maybe a little tiny
12:40
vase with some flowers on your side
12:42
table. Consider adding in some wall
12:46
decor on either side, throw blankets,
12:50
pillows. Style it up the way that you
12:52
want. But these are sort of the the
12:54
fundamentals of these three different
12:56
space options. And again, you can
12:58
achieve any one of these in your home.
13:01
It does not matter whether you have a
13:02
built-in window seat or not. you can
13:04
still create a cozy reading nook around
13:06
a window. The same with a corner.
13:09
Everyone's got corners in their homes.
13:11
So, just a free corner will do that.
13:14
Preferably one that's lower traffic
13:15
area, but certainly you can carve out a
13:18
corner in your home to create a cozy
13:20
reading nook. And then, of course, the
13:22
canopy option. I would say indoors is
13:26
best for kids. Outdoors would be best
13:29
for adults. So, if you want to carve out
13:31
a little space on your patio that's
13:33
going to be a nice little reading nook,
13:35
you can do that with just an umbrella or
13:37
a sail shade. Or you can invest and get
13:40
in one of those day beds that has a
13:42
retractable canopy already on it. Or you
13:45
can have your egg chair. These are all
13:47
really great options just to create a
13:49
little enclosed space for yourself where
13:52
you can escape and relax in and just
13:55
read a book. So, that's it for this
13:57
video. I hope you found it helpful.
13:59
Don't forget to visit me at dianor.com.
14:01
I post all about home decorating ideas
14:04
and inspiration over there. If you like
14:07
this video, please give it a like and
14:08
consider subscribing to my channel. And
14:10
I'll see you in the next one. Bye.
14:14
[Music]
#Home & Interior Decor
#Home Furnishings