So as you know, I’ve been making a few little changes to my dining room in between other bits and pieces (and getting a new puppy which has miraculously taken up ALL of my time). I recently removed the gallery wall which of course then starts a whole process of everything needing to be changed. I call it the Decorating Domino Effect.

Well,Β when the good folks at Skullbliss contacted me about reviewing one of their beautifully-carved skulls, I already knew the perfect place it would go because I’d been looking for something to balance out the expanse left behind by removing the gallery. As much as I liked the mirror in that spot, it was only temporary as I wanted it back in my office where it was originally meant to be.

Check out the new addition to my dining room, a beautifully-carved skull from Skull Bliss

Now, I know not everyone would be thrilled having an animal head in their homes and if this is you, it’s fine. We’re all different, we all have different things we’re okay with and things that bother us and I have a feeling this may be one of those things that divides opinion. But for me, I eat meat (from grass-fed animals, again a personal choice), wear leather and I have no objection to having a cowhide rug – in fact, I adore my two cowhides (by-products of the meat industry) so I personally feel it would be hypocritical of me to object to something like this.

I've been making a few little changes to my dining room recently, come and take a look at the new addition to my gallery wall from Skull Bliss.

However, my first question to Skullbliss was how the carved cow skulls are acquired. The response from Skullbliss quelled any worry for me and I found it fascinating so I thought I’d share that with you here.

“We actually buy all our skulls from local butchers in Indonesia. So no animals are killed in order toΒ create this home decor.
Β 
“Most Balinese are Hindus, which means they are deeply religious people and truly respect every living being. Still they have to kill animals for food, however they didn’t want to waste any parts of the animal and they had the idea that something should also be done with the by-products. So they cleaned the bones and started to carve traditional and religious symbols and ornaments into them. We were blown away by the idea to use the bones to create unique and breath-taking animal skulls – simply pieces of artwork for eternity and we just loved their approach to give each animal their dignity back by transforming them into pieces of artwork which are nothing less than captivating.Β 

“The process of cleaning the bones, preparing them for the carving procedure and adding the finishing touch to them (plus adding luscious black horns after everything else is done) is a process which takes around 1-2 weeks. The carving itself takes up to 3 full days where the craftsman carves numerous symbols and tribal ornaments into the bones. Usually their inspiration comes from their religious background like the Hindu god Ganesha or they carve other typically Asian symbols like dragons.”

So satisfied these are ethically sourced and cruelty-free, I chose the extra large cowskull with the rose detailΒ from their collection for my home. I genuinely think every room should have something a little unusual in it and this really creates such a beautifully boho vibe which I adore. When it came in, I tentatively showed it to Wayne, not entirely sure what his reaction would be (he’s not that keen on my love of gold skulls scattered around my house) – happily, he thought it was exquisite! Result! It’s also incredibly large and substantialΒ so it’s probably worth noting thatΒ I needed to use a drill and rawplugs to hang it up – well worth the extra holes however and to be fair, the whole room needs patching anyway! It’s such a statement though and really, an artwork in itself.
My dining room gallery wall featuring a new addition from Skull Bliss.
Once I hung the skull above the television in here, I knew I’d found my perfect piece. It’s attention grabbing (hopefully taking away the attention of the TV in here) and I love the symmetry it brings to this wall.
After that, I decided to do something I’d been considering for ages – I swapped the gold starburst mirror that was hanging above the mantle with the white one that hung in the living room. I couldn’t believe how much the white mirror really POPPED against the deep blue walls in here.
Take a look at the little updates I've been making in my dining room including adding a white starburst mirror above the mantle piece
And as you can see, my peony bush FINALLY erupted into a million frothy pink blossoms and so of course, every vessel in my house is filled with them. I’m enjoying it while it lasts – they fade far to quickly for my liking!
Updating my dining room with some gorgeous peonies.
Refreshing my dining room by adding a white starburst mirror above the mantle piece
I do really like the changes although I feel now that there is just that bit too much white in this room with the table, chairs, sideboard, mantle and mirror all in glowing white. I feel like the room needs a wood piece to ground it and I’m eager to find something to replace the white sideboard which I’ve now had for nearly 5 years (an eBay buy that I paid Β£50 for so I think I’ve got my money’s worth from it!). The top of the sideboard has a big crack running through it as well so it’s probably time to retire it!
I've been making some updates to my dining room including adding a beautiful carved skull from Skull Bliss
Here’s another shot of that mirror!
Take a look at some of the little updates I've been making to my dining room
And of course, as I said in this post, I would actually like to move the TV to another wall altogether. However, that gorgeously carved skull will definitely stay in this room no matter what as I adore it!
I added a beautifully-carved skull from Skull Bliss to my dining room gallery wall.
Skullbliss carry a large range of various skulls of all different sizes. The best part is that they ship WORLDWIDE and not only that, they take care of all the import and export documentation for you alongside adhering to international taxidermy laws – so you are sure to get your unique skull with no issues.

So even though the changes in here are small, I’m quite happy with how the space is progressing! I’m sure there will be plenty more to come but in the meantime, what do you think of my new additions?

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Disclaimer: I received my skull free in exchange for this review but as always, all opinions, words and images are my very own. I only partner with companies I really like and think you will too! Thanks for supporting the businesses that support Swoon Worthy.


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