Back in 2015, I participated in the Shabby Chic Mix & Match Design Challenge for Chairish, an online marketplace for vintage and used furniture. Chairish has now expanded with a sister website called DECASO, which features an ultra-curated selection of exceptional antique and designer furniture offered by the world’s most respected dealers.

To celebrate the launch of DECASO, I have accepted to participate in their Interior Design Bucket List Challenge. (Thanks for inviting me Gabrielle! ) The collections are definitely a lot more upscale and pricier (some items are out-of-this-world crazy expensive). So, I have been asked to pick my bucket list items from DECASO’S collection and put together my dream space. Uh…yeah! So with a virtual unlimited budget in hand — ta da — here is My Bucket List picks:

1 Sunburst Mirror  2 Rosenthal Fornasetti Temi E Variazioni Motiv 5 Plate, 1980s  3 Porter Lamp by Stone and Sawyer  4 Antique French Louis XV Style Bergere Chair in Old Paint  5 Antique French Louis XVI Ebonized Mahogany 3 Over 3 Commode w/Marble  6 Regency Style Designer Taboret Bench by Randy Esada Designs  7 Two Spirited Carved Alabaster Cockatoos Perched on a Branch  8 Italian Neoclassical Gilt Tole and Crystal Chandelier

The inspiration and starting point for my dream space was the French Louis XVI commode. Isn’t it gorgeous? Very bold, but yet sleek and sophisticated for my girly taste. I must admit that in addition to my obsession with glass domes/cloches, my next home décor hoarding compulsion is anything in the shape of star/sunbursts. I just love the ‘celestial’ mirror. The Antique French Louis XV Style chair has a bit more ‘patina’ than I would like, but the colour of it is divine — like butterscotch or caramel, which I prefer to call ‘old gold’. I read somewhere in a decorating magazine that every room needs something whimsical and these cockatoos fit that perfectly.

Awww, now I wish my bucket list was ‘for real’. Thanks DECASO for letting me dream!

Fall is one of my favourite times of the year and it’s so easy and fun to decorate around the house. Bringing in aspects of nature like mini pumpkins, pinecones and wheat is both affordable and beautiful. Here are a few key ways that I decorated my house for Fall this year.

Set the Table
On the quest for a table runner for quite awhile now, I finally found the perfect one made of a burlap material. Yay! It provides a neutral colour and brings in just a bit of texture to the table. For my tablescape, I gathered items that I already had tucked away, like the pinecones and mini quail egg nests and only needed to purchase the mini pumpkins. I added some tea light candles and the table was set for a warm and inviting dinner with my family.

I must confess, I have a fetish for urns of all sizes, and I was delighted to top these little white urns with mini pumpkins. I was only able to find a few white pumpkins so gold spray paint came to the rescue to glam up the orange pumpkins.

Do you have a box of dinnerware inherited from your family and buried in the garage for years? That was the case for me until I realized that the plates I received from my mom are ‘kind of cool’ after all. The white plates with the leafy band design feels very elegant and modern to me now. Wish I knew how old this pattern is, maybe from the 60’s or 70’s?

Decorate the Stairs
If you don’t have a fireplace (like me) to display decorations, then an alternate area is the stairs. (Sorry, this might not be an option for those with small children and curious pets) Since I grew up on a farm in Saskatchewan, sheafs of wheat always remind me of the Fall harvest. The lit candles add such a wonderful glow and sparkle.

Create a Vignette
Pulling together a few of my favourite things — a decorative pillow and faux-fur throw — I created a vignette on a bench next to the stairs with pumpkins and the sheaf of wheat. Makes for a cozy and inviting spot to sit and enjoy a cup of tea with a good book.