It feels a bit weird posting Horror Home Decor on a Monday, but at the same time I got so tied up in dreaming up what my kitchen would look like if I revamped it with an apothecary theme this weekend that my mind has room for little else at the moment.

It seemed appropriate for a kitchen make-over, since cooking itself is mostly chemistry with just a pinch of magic.

“Apothecaries” always come to my mind with images of Victorian scientists and charlatans mixing up strange herbal remedies to cure-what-ails-you.

So here’s a few elements I found really inciting during my design-dreaming for Horror Home Decor in the theme of an

Apothecary Dreamland

The Kitchen

Glass apothecary jars lining shelves of aged wood, and little elements of whimsy hidden here and there is what I’d love to see. The dark green I picked for the background is what I think would look cool for the wall color, that with the wooden cabinets etc. would look pretty darn sharp.

1. The Kitchen inspiration photo I found on a post about pallet upcycling ideas.
2. The test tube spice rack was an instructable I found.

I’d love to give that tutorial a shot one of these days. It would be fun to have all of my spices displayed like that on the wall.

Then my experiments in cooking would feel more like the creations of a mad scientist than well… Weird mushy things that kind of crawl off the plate on their own… Heh, it’s a good thing Immortal Alexander does most of the cooking. 😉 But I at least know where to buy the test tubes!

3. I love those pinned and framed bugs you find in taxidermy shops and natural history museums. I have ever sense working on an Indie film called “The Word,” where the main villain expressed her inner sadism through her bug collections.

That being said, actual dead bugs in the kitchen just seems a bit gross, So I thought this butterfly mug from Urban Outfitters would satisfy the need..

The mug and this collection of enamel bug spoons. How cool are these?

4. Glass apothecary jars can happen two ways

#1 – Buy them

I found some cool ones on Amazon and the collection on the bottom left of the image is from Restoration Hardware. That’s a dangerous site for me, btw. So many sexy sexy pieces of home decor.

or

#2 – Make them

There are so many great ideas for how to make your own versions of these that I had to try it out for myself. I did and I’m very excited with how my jars are coming out. They’re not quite done yet, but I’ll be posting my tutorial about how to make them next Monday.

5. Half-moon succulent planter

MOAR succulents? Yeah, I like the life plants bring into a room. Even though I’m forever killing them.

Succulents at least do well with neglect, so I’m attracted to them for being the “last-girl” of plants.

The Library

And what does every good scientist need after a long day of experimenting? Why a cozy library full of dead things and clever glowing bulbs  to relax and read in of course. I may never have the pleasure of owning a house with enough room to have a proper “library” but I can dream.

1. The room inspiration picture came from moonlightrainbow.
2. The delightfully creepy collection came from Ruth Burts Interiors – now that’s a site to visit for design inspiration when you’rein a land of day-dreams. There’s some really great ideas posted there.

And if you’re looking to start a collection of curiosities I recommend checking out Our Lady Of Reclamation. They find and sell some wonderfully bizarre things.

3. BUGS! in Glass jars! ❤ There are a lot of places to find these, but the one in the photo is from the Alex MacArthur catalog

4. The Skeleton pillow design is another DIY tutorial I’d love to try out. It’s fairly simple, just your basic pillow with an iron-on design and a clever use of the blind-hem stitch.

5. These chemist’s lamps are a few more examples of why Restoration Hardware is a dangerous and beautiful place.

Oh the Curious Curiosities

So many curiosities, so little shelf space.

1. I found this Apothecary collection inspiration on the Sisters of the Black Moon blog.
2. This Scroll Ball Pendant Light was made by FaustBrothersDesign on Etsy, and it’s one of those gorgeous things I see constantly popping up on my Pinterest feed. And I totally get why.
3. More Bugs in jars! Yay! Both of these were from the Alex McArthur collection again. I just really like the way they display their specimens.
4. Now, this exact multi-canvas painting isn’t available anymore, but the artist, BrittsFineArt, is, so I recommend checking out their work or even inquiring about a commission if you like the painting I found.
5. And last, but not least, is that wreath of gnarled branches. Because nothing says, “Welcome Home” quite like the crooked dead fingers of a tree. This wreath, originally came from Crate and Barrel Halloween collection, but I imagine a trip to the woods and some wire could create a similar effect.

I hope you found my musings to be entertaining a maybe just a bit inspiring. Please make sure to visit again next Monday for my apothecary jar tutorial. 🙂

Have a delightfully dark day my friend.