Back Skins Ideas

[KVS]

Bushbuck back skin makes for a good mat in my office.

 

[broncolcj]

Bushbuck back skin makes for a good mat in my office.

View attachment 47716

Oh that is fantastic. I am stealing your idea!

 

[Bert the Turtle]

I've posted this before, but may as well cut and paste and save some typing:

I had a local guy sew some back skins together into a rug for my son. I got the idea from some fancy hunting magazine, I think they wanted a bit over $2000 to make one up. The local guy wanted to charge me $50 but I gave him $100.

In Africa, these rugs get walked on. In America, they get walked around. For $2000, I can see that, but I didn't want to to that, so I got the $100 version and I walk on it.

I think back skins are something we all got when we first started out, but as the collection grows, I know I don't get them all the time. At first, it seems like a "once-in-a-lifetime" event and you don't want to "waste" any hide. In reality, I've found them to be marginally useful. I really like my rug, but one is enough at least for now.

My move away from back skins may just be me. I've also gone from shoulder mounts to skull mounts for a lot of animals: sure, a cat I'd get a full body mount, a particular animal might warrant a shoulder mount, but shoulder is no longer my default position and I don't consider a skull mount to be a second rate/cost cutting measure, but rather an equally viable trophy choice. That it costs a lot less is a huge plus, but not the only consideration. I also like the aesthetic and they take up a lot less space.

 

[ActionBob]

@edward the more I see your stuff, the more I like it. @Bert the Turtle Love that and was thinking the same thing but likely will have to wait.

My plans are multiple... My wife plans to hang her black wildebeest backskin under the shoulder mount in her office. Between us we have three fallow deer. Wife's is a very common color and shoulder mounted. I have one lighter and one darker and plan to do a left and right wall pedestal to be mounted each side of the shoulder. Then all three backskins underneath. Either side by side, staggered up and down according to space, or stacked. My bushbuck is a floor pedestal with front legs standing in water... Plan to hang his backskin behind him. Any extras will be made into patchwork.... The buffalos are tanned leather to be made into luggage and other stuff.

 

[Savage Hunter]

likely about to make an ottoman out of my wife's zebra backskin. It will go with the chair that we upholstered with my full zebra hide from a couple of years ago.

 

[buck wild]

Wish I could claim credit but I saw it on a hunting show. I used 12x12 cheap wood frame art canvas frames and wrapped the skins around and stapled in the back. Best thing is my wife likes them and she let me put them in "her" room since mine is full of mounts

 

[huntermn15]

Very cool. I'm always looking for new ideas and I like the fact that it was DIY.

 

[BRICKBURN]

Creative idea. Since that is where many/most of the distinctive markings are you sure get good use of the back skins.

 

[CAustin]

Buck wild I think they turned out very nice!

 

[Royal27]

That's just neat, and a good use of the hides.

You could do a more too, mean different shapes and sizes. Interesting...

 

[Mark19707]

I like it!

 

[Lee M]

I like that - Outstanding idea. Here is a chair I did with my Zebra back skin. Bought the chair for $25 at a 2nd hand store. Just used a staple gun to attach the skin. Before and after shot.

 

[cpr0312]

@Christina Nyczepir ,

Pillows look nice! My taxidermist actually just suggested to me that I bring home as many back skins as possible to make pillows also! Could you tell me why you wished you would have brought the full skins back versus just back skins?

 

[buck wild]

Here's what I did with some of mine

http://www.africahunting.com/threads/backhides.25789/

 

[buck wild]

I like the chair a lot !! I didn't have enough hide to do that much.

 

[Christina Nyczepir]

@Christina Nyczepir ,

Pillows look nice! My taxidermist actually just suggested to me that I bring home as many back skins as possible to make pillows also! Could you tell me why you wished you would have brought the full skins back versus just back skins?

The only way to bring back the full skin is to not have a trophy made of the animal you hunted. But somehow, to me at least, I would think there would be more backskin with a shoulder mount as opposed to a pedestal mount. The more of the animal skin you have, the more options for decorating. I like decorating options.

Here's a photo of the Springbok pillow I had made. It works well at the end of the bed in one of my guest bedrooms. I sprayed painted a wrought iron garden bench in a cream color and had a cream cushion custom made to fit. I think it just goes to show that the backskins can look lovely anywhere you have them in your home. As you all have also demonstrated. And it might also help encourage your wives to allow you to hunt more often in Africa if you present them with all the amazing home decorating opportunities. Though, it also means more money out of your pocket.

 

[Christina Nyczepir]

A latest backskin project. I hated how the black leather had worn over time on this men's cherry wood valet. So I replaced it with a piece of Impala. I also saw, recently, where someone had used a black (probably felt) backing to a backskin and it served as a sort of doily on a beverage server. It was elegant underneath the crystal whisky decanters in the photo. I love the idea so much I want to do something similar with my Kudu backskin and use it on a mahogany dining room table I have in a mountain home. But I would prefer either a suede or, at least, a black moleskin fabric as a backing

.

 

[Desert Dog]

I know its been a year since activity in this thread, but it gave me so many cool ideas.

I really had no use for backskins and they sat rolled up in a closet. So I had some pillows made from a Blue Wildebeest, and used another wildebeest backskin as a throw. Blue wildebeest REALLY makes black leather POP!







Now to find a use for my other backskins!

 

[Rick Cox]

Thank you once again @WALKINGPREY2!
@gizmo jipp hippo hide is not used for too many things. We have a ostrich skin couch and it realy came out nice.
Below is also something different than a normal photo, it used as a night light in the bedroom (only way I could sneak a trophy into the bedroom)View attachment 36098

Who did this work? I assume it is laser etched glass lit from below? Very cool. In another life I used to show my products at the CES show in Vegas. One of my room partners did something similar with his display, but wouldn't tell anyone how...