Old Style, New Interpretation: Taxidermy In The Modern Home

Serendipity seems to be the name of the game for us at the Big Bear project. Last week, I stumbled upon a great set of antique skis. Now, it's with the antlers, as it turns out, re-imagining and reinventing taxidermy is becoming popular among designers.

In the premier Fall issue of Malibu Home Magazine, This feature talks about the rise of a more animal-friendly form of taxidermy. These projects aren't trophies, but thoughtful works of art made with animals which have died from natural causes.

I am seeing antlers and deer heads in almost every shelter magazine and design catalogues. 

Restoration Hardware offers a varied selection of realistic looking cast resin antlers. But for those of you who might be squeamish about having a real (or realistic looking) taxidermy head in your home, there are couple of cool, modern alternatives, like this white lacquer deer head. Ruby's Lounge on Etsy also offers these paper resin mounts, for a more whimsical design.

If you want to go green, there are even deer heads made of recycled cardboard! These have to be assembled like a 3D puzzle and would make a fun addition to a game room.

This coincidental trend couldn't have come at a better time since a pair of mounted antlers would be the perfect addition to the chic cabin-in-the-woods.   Although I hate trends, I have to say,  all these different interpretations of antlers and taxidermy are pretty cool and edgy and I find it to be a timeless trend, that will carry on for many years, as it already has, IF done right. 



We made our purchase of these antler's this past  weekend.  This particular find is a rare vintage mount that managed to find its way from Montana.

Don't worry, though. These are naturally shed, so the animal didn't have to meet an untimely end.

Honestly, I find the full head mounts a bit sad and creepy, but I still like the look of real antlers. Naturally shed antlers let me have the best of both worlds: a timeless traditional look without the traditional means.