A Victorianesque Hallowe'en: Spooky Chic

"Spooky Chic".. I wish I'd coined this phrase, but sadly, I did not. On the incredibly "up" side, this wonderfully fun style is to be found everywhere and you can even do it yourself.
"Spooky chic" is a great spin on "shabby chic", the phrase used to describe upcycled
and repurposed furniture and other decorative goodies. When one is looking at shabby
chic decor, the first thing that often springs to mind are bits of old furniture it
pastel or white tones with a worn finish. The idea is that the pieces have been saved
and rather than completely refinished, their worn, aged look adds to their charm and
gives their surroundings a certain homey warmth.

Then there is Spooky Chic. Imagine those same worn pieces, but in black, with worn
edges, nicks, scratches, perhaps a drawer pull or handle broken or missing. Maybe it
is a small table. Toss an old lace doily or bit of worn cloth on it with a few
candles, an old oil lamp, a vase of dead flowers, and a skull or two. Now you are on 
your way to shabby chic. The idea is that your decor have that "worn" look. And is
that not what we are going for here? Our classy, haunted, somewhat abandoned
Victorianesque home is the perfect setting for the shabby, spooky chic style. Where
else would you find worn, but well dressed bits of furniture and dried bouquets?
As I mentioned above, I did not coin the phrase, and that is very much to your
advantage. Crafting and antique sites (even eBay) are easily searched using this
phrase and will pour forth a plethora of spooky chic decorations, furniture pieces,
paper goods from posters and banners to greeting cards and wearables. We are luckily
in a world FULL of talented crafts with an eye for nostalgia and a gift for making it
spooky. I have featured several artists already whose lovely work does easily fall
into this category and I will continue to do so over time. One of my passions is to
support our artists, both local and abroad. Never let imagination fade.
Now while this is a shorter piece tonight, the purpose was simply to share this fun
genre in art and decor, and to open the creaking wrought iron garden gate and
hopefully nudge a few people through to their search engine or local boutiques and
art fairs. It had occurred to me as I was writing this that the majority of my
suggestions this month will, indeed, fall toward the black-beaded fringe, if not dead
center of the Spooky Chic universe. But that is the beauty of it; Some Victorian can
be Spooky Chic, but not all Spooky Chic has to be Victorian. Much of it has a fun,
Bohemian flair, some looks a bit like the trinket tents at a Dia de Los Muertos
festival, and some resembles a more mid-20th Century retro twist to Hallowe'en. The
idea is that it shows its age and revels in its imperfections.
So now I am off to see what some of my favourite artists have come up with recently.
The office walls are filling fast, but I have no doubt I can find somewhere else to
hang or otherwise display goodies.
Until tomorrow and Happy Hunting,
Raven