Entry No. 46 — the Boulder file — filed under: haunted
The Terrorium Shop
A plant-filled shop of responsibly sourced skulls, in-house taxidermy and living terrariums that doubles as a workshop space. The class roster swings from insect pinning and taxidermy preservation to 'Terrorium' builds where you fold real animal remains into a living miniature ecosystem of moss and plants. Most seats are sold individually, but some sessions are listed specifically as couples workshops.
The story
If you thought collecting bones was strictly a Victorian relic, Denver proved otherwise when gardener Amber Hage-Ali gifted her taxidermist partner, Ian Johnson, a living terrarium built around an animal skull. The pair met at an arcade dive bar in Manitou Springs—where Johnson wooed her with found bones rather than flowers—and began combining his taxidermy background and dermestid beetle colony with her plant design. What started on their porch and at local craft markets moved into a Denver storefront in 2019, creating a space where decay and regrowth sit side by side.
Nothing in the room was harvested for sport; every bone, reptile, and insect is responsibly sourced from natural deaths, roadkill salvage, butterfly farms, or animal control pickups. Instead of cold museum glass, you find lush houseplants and green moss weaving through bleached animal skeletons, wet specimens, and diaphonized creatures. By 2022, the operation expanded into two distinct addresses: the original retail shop on Yates Street and the Terrorium Annex a mile away, built purely to host hands-on preservation classes.
What it's like
Stepping into the Yates Street retail shop feels like wandering into a greenhouse managed by a 19th-century cabinet of curiosities collector. But if you booked a workshop, make sure your GPS points to the Annex studio on 49th Avenue instead—and don't show up late, because specimen materials cannot be held or picked up after a missed session. Expect to spend a couple of quiet hours leaning over a workbench pinning beetle wings or planting moss around clean skull fragments. If you're bringing a partner, double-check the calendar for couples-specific listings, unless you both want to fight for individual seats.
The move: Pick a paired class and spend the evening pinning a beetle or building a moss terrarium around responsibly sourced specimens together.
📍 Before you go Workshops run at the Terrorium Annex studio, separate from the retail shop; specimen/taxidermy materials can't be picked up later, and some classes require a 10-person minimum if booked private. Check the calendar for seats vs. couples-specific sessions.
- 📍 Berkeley / Denver
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: Studio (Terrorium Annex): 3611 W 49th Ave, Denver, CO 80221; shop: 4416 Yates St, Denver, CO 80212
Hours: Added 2026-06-23 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Nomad Neon — Pair your bone-and-moss ecosystem build with a session bending real glass light tubing under fire at this nearby working neon studio.
- Meow Wolf Denver: Adulti-Verse Late-Night — Follow an afternoon of insect pinning with an adults-only late-night wander through Convergence Station's surreal four-story art labyrinth.
- Nora's Speakeasy — Cap off an evening of taxidermy preservation with a quiet cocktail hidden in a basement venue accessed through an unmarked back door.
- The Slacksmith — Trade delicate beetle wings for heavy iron by pairing your preservation workshop with a day of forging steel blades at the anvil.
Good to know
Where are the workshops held?
Workshop classes take place at the Terrorium Annex studio located at 3611 W 49th Ave, separate from the retail shop at 4416 Yates St.
How does the shop source its animal specimens?
Every specimen is responsibly sourced from natural deaths, roadkill, butterfly farms, animal control pickups, or reptile breeders—never killed for display.
Can I pick up class materials if I miss my workshop?
No, taxidermy and specimen materials are used strictly during scheduled sessions and cannot be saved or picked up later.
What is required to book a private group workshop?
Private workshops held at the Terrorium Annex studio require a minimum of 10 attendees.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · Yelp · 303magazine.com · Westword · Atlas Obscura · msmayhem.com
last checked: 2026-06-23