Nerdy Chic: Designing with Science

Confession: Despite my claims at rationality, I spend at least half of my time online perusing design and organization blogs.  My favorites include Apartment Therapy, Chez Larsson, Design Sponge, Manhattan Nest and Ikea Hacker, among others.  I love seeing how other people have organized their homes and lives in creative ways, and I dream that someday I will have the time and space for such endeavors.

In my attempts to create a somewhat unique space on a graduate student budget, my apartment has taken on something of an accidental nerdy-chic style.  I mean, I'm pretty nerdy (but also chic, right guys? right?) so it makes sense.  I have a framed piece of wrapping paper printed with pages from a human anatomy textbook, several botanical watercolors by my grandmother, a small collection of pine-cones, and a vintage celestial globe given to me in high school.  I also have glass bottles in many shapes and sizes scattered around the apartment, in which I cultivate philodendron cuttings and germinated seeds from my leftover produce, and handmade throw pillows (I had a lot of time last summer) with appliquéd sea creatures on them (an octopus and a sting ray).   Adding to the sense of nerd-dom are bookshelves full of astronomy texts, tattered fiction and education journals, and of course me, the resident nerd.

It turns out I'm not alone.  Science style is all over the place, and has even been spotlighted several times on Apartment Therapy.  Check out some of these science-inspired pieces on my secret lust-list.

Textbook inspired pillows by Heather Lins Home.  The best part is the addition of the figure numbers.

Has anybody else noticed that taxidermy and botanicals are beyond hip right now?

Hey these guys totally stole my idea.  I love how BIG they went with it though!

This globe looks a lot like mine.  I think the lines of it are very mid-century; I could see it on Don Draper's desk.

Too cool.  Hey doctor friends, could you get your hands on an x-ray for me?

A lovely turn-of-the-century (the one before last) photograph of Lick Observatory, one of my favorite places.  Would look awesome on my wall.

I think I need some of these flasks to complement my bottles.  They make perfect flower vases!  Plus, you can conveniently measure out the cut plant food.

 And of course the dream of the mid-century wooden ant-farm complete with queen.