When preparing for Halloween, most people think to costumes first. But don’t forget about your decor! Whether you’re hosting a spooky soiree, or just getting in the spirit of the holiday, adding a few tricks and treats to your home is as much fun as dressing up.

Nothing says Halloween like a classic skull. Choose one with crystals for a glamorous touch that will still be a conversation piece long after the season has ended.

For small children, keep things creepy but cute with Herend’s delicate tarantula figurines.

Mix and match real pumpkins with elegant glass ones to create a unique, textured look.

Enchant your guests with hauntingly beautiful barware in shades of smoke, midnight and jet black.

Add a punch of orange to your bed or bath to keep yourself in the spirit of the season.

Can’t wait until Thanksgiving to get this Holiday season started? The transition from summer to fall is the perfect time to host a harvest party! Head to your local farmer’s market for some seasonal garden delicacies, and invite over some friends to celebrate the brisk breezes, turning leaves, and maybe even some sprinkling showers…

Have decor and drinks ready for guests as soon as they walk in the door. Add a few of these delicate pumpkins to your entryway or mantle, and try serving a seasonal ale with a hint of spice.

Stage your table or buffet with rich, dark colors.

Leave the guest bedroom door ajar to make friends and family feel welcome. Dress the bed with warm fall colors that invite out-of-towners to stay a while.

Join the weathered look of summer with the formality of fall by letting the character of  woodgrain or brick shine through. If you have an unfinished table or exposed wall, use this as a backdrop for fine cut glass or crystal.

Set the table with rustic refinement. Stoneware and pewter are more casual than fine china and silver, but still look pulled-together. Serve bread hot out of the oven, and rip it instead of cutting for that family-style feel.

Hosting a Harvest Party? Share your tips for fun fall festivities!

Founded by interior designer and arts enthusiast Karen Pulaski, Tribute Goods pays homage to great artists and pays it forward with a 10% donation of all profits to the arts, education and AIDS research.

This fresh, Texas-based brand showcases beautiful prints and patterns, produced on the finest Italian linens.  Sea Glass was inspired by an original watercolor:

“Strength and Beauty” was an idea from my daughter Emma. She thought that I should create a floral line and the English rose is her favorite. – Karen Pulaski

I began to dream of images and over a period of years developed my first collection based on the Elements- Earth, Air, Water and Fire. I loved the sentiment and fundamental connection that these themes had. – Karen Pulaski

I began to search for artist(s) who have a subtle touch in their watercolor technique but with a contemporary edge. – Karen Pulaski

I wanted to create a floral motif that was masculine as well. A tension needed to be created that emphasized both the fluid floral aspect and a more rigid geometric pattern while maintaining harmony. Like a good marriage! – Karen Pulaski

Love Karen Pulaski’s free-spirited, give-back style? See more Tribute Goods here!

Marrying the magic of summer with the anticipation of Holiday merriment, Fall is the perfect time for a truly enchanting wedding. And who better to keep us on trend than Occasions Magazine? Here, we give a peek at their Fall 2014 issue, where they feature our Vietri Fantasia Dinnerware and Waterford Lismore Crimson Champagne Flutes in their delightful Sunflower and Scarlet motifs.

These harvest hues can instantly bring the charm of the season to your festivities and your home. Take a look at some of our favorite ways to use them every day:

Try a ruby red runner for a splash of spice that lets your tabletop shine through underneath.

Give your boudoir some spunk with a cheery gold quilt and shams.

Ground any space with a bold stripe crimson rug.

Show your kitchen some sunshine with festive kitchen towels.

Add instant elegance to your desk or credenza with a lustrous deep red accessories box.

A retail bookstore in the age of Amazon and ebooks?  That’s exactly what Assouline does, and here’s how they’ve done it in their ten “libraries” around the world:

1) Red makes everything look richer.

2.  Display books with interesting objects from around the world (like this Bambou bookrest from L’Objet):

3) Treat your books like art and display them accordingly.

4) Bring in a bit of history and tradition.

5) Some days you celebrate the fast life …

6) … while on other days you just unwind.

7) Well-loved books go with well-worn floors.

8) An alphabet and numbers rug – what a genius idea for a library!

9) Picture lights are essential for illuminating important pieces.

10) The writing on the wall says it all.

Don’t have time to run out to a store?  Come visit our online selection of Assouline books here.

(All images courtesy Assouline).

Hosting for the holidays? Now’s the time to start planning those parties. And because all custom table linens are made to order, it can take up to 10-12 weeks to complete production, so get out your measuring tape! As these orders cannot be changed or cancelled after they are placed, here are six helpful tips to ensure you order the perfect table linens:

1. Count your expected guests. You may need to add additional leaves to your table for these special occasions, so be sure to measure the fullest length you need. Ordering additional napkins can be a great way to ensure you’re prepared for anything.

2. Consider shape. If you have an oval table, both an oval or rectangular cloth will work. Take a look at Sferra’s Classico, which has elegant long corners draping from an oval table shape:

3. Calculate your desired drop. We recommend a 10-15 inch drop on all sides, so be sure to add 20-30 inches to both the length and width of your table. Casual settings typically require a shorter drop, while some formal linens may reach all the way to the floor.

Not sure how long your drop should be? Place one of your dining chairs at your table and measure the gap between the bottom of the table and the top of the seat, and use this as your guide.

4. Choose your material. While linen shows classic elegance and tradition, you may also consider an easy-care option if you need to use these cloths frequently in a short period of time. Options like Egyptian Cotton allow for a texture with a beautiful, subtle sheen, while a synthetic option may be the right choice for those who need to quickly wash and dry to prepare for the next event. Easy care materials require little to no ironing, but if you opt for linen, try ironing your cloth while it’s still damp, which makes wrinkles much easier to erase.

5. Remember, these may shrink! All of our custom tablecloths are made slightly larger to compensate for shrinkage. If you would prefer to have the cloth cut exactly to your specific dimensions, without any additional fabric, please feel free to indicate this in Special Instructions at Checkout.

6. Have fun! Don’t forget the reason for the occasion: the celebrate with the ones you love! If you want to bring life to a white or ecru tablecloth, try colorful dinnerware or vibrant seasonal flowers on your table. If you love bright linens, choose from over 100 colors in the aptly named Festival Collection. Please note that the Festival fabric cannot be cut in an oval shape, but looks beautiful in round or rectangle.

For all of our custom table linens, click here.

How will you make this Holiday Season shine?

Alain de Boutton recently wrote a book called Art as Therapy, where he asked: “What does art do for us?”  His answer is that art completes us — it gives us what we yearn for but are missing in our day-to-day lives.

For example, why does this painting, “A Courtyard of a House in Delft” by Pieter de Hooch, still appeal to us?

Is it because we yearn for a simpler life, one without all the complications of the modern world, yet neat and proud in its own way?   Most of us wouldn’t trade our real life for a 17th century one, but this painting still reminds us of how our life should be.   Maybe it could even get us to do a few things to live our ideal life.

We see this all the time in Los Angeles.  We all live in a giant modern city, but our homes reflect the life we wish for, not the one we actually lead.  And because Angelenos hail from all corners of the world, there is incredible diversity in the homes we build here. For example, could you believe that these houses are literally right next to each other?

This one reminds us that the future is still full of possibility:

Or maybe we just need a cup of tea . . . in the English countryside:

Here’s to America at its best — can you smell the apple pie baking?

Here we can escape to Andalusia, with its gnarled olive trees, trickling fountains, and cooling tiles:

Each house is in its way an antidote for the modern world.  We may all drive through traffic to spend a day in front of screens, but the life we yearn for is not lost.  We just have to design for it.

Created in collaboration with Zuber & Cie, Haviland’s Le Bresil Dinnerware is as much a work of art as Zuber’s famous Les Vues du Bresil scenic mural wallpaper collection.  Originally introduced in 1829 and printed in 247 colors from 1693 blocks, Bresil is one of Zuber’s most complex productions.

Each Zuber panel contains large expanses of color and incredibly ornate details, many of which are recreated in the dinnerware.

With tropical trees and exotic birds, the elaborate imagery of the dessert plate captures the imaginative spirit of Zuber’s colorful scenes.

By balancing the delicacy of the bird in the foreground with the intricacy of the trees behind, Haviland’s artisans used dimension to perfect Zuber’s meticulous style in this stunning tray.

If you love this as much as we do, next time you’re in Switzerland, be sure to stop by the Musee du Papier Peint, which has a mural of the wallpaper in their Salon Bresilien:

For more pieces from this exquisite collection, click here.

Written in the late 18th Century, Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, or The Magic Flute, is one of the best-loved operas in history. With this as his inspiration, whimsical Danish artist Bjørn Wiinblad created the Sarastro dinnerware collection for Rosenthal.

Each piece in the line features a different scene from the opera depicted in relief, so they all sport exceptionally wide rims.

The genius is in the details.  Here are a few of the ones we’ve discovered:

Fowl Play: The symbol of the bird is used throughout this opera.  For example, one of the central characters, Papageno the bird catcher, sings playful tunes intended to mimic the sound of chirping birds. Look closely at pieces from Wiinblad’s dinnerware collection, and you’ll see that the theme of the bird is shown in beautiful relief throughout.

Up to No Good: With elaborate costumes and heavenly melodies, Mozart created many of his characters to be deceptively beautiful. The Queen, who initially appears to be harmless, later reveals her malicious intent to destroy Sarastro. In Wiinblad’s depictions of these characters, they are intentionally shown in an aura of ambiguous elegance.

Hidden Secrets: There are beautiful secrets and surprises hidden throughout the opera.  For his part, Wiinblad surprises his audience by using his own handwriting to paint the names of the arias and scenes depicted on each piece.  But they’re not obvious … he’s hidden them in the crevices and underneath each piece.

It is a collection that looks as good on the table as it does on the shelf.  Available in gold or plain white, each piece is delightful.

To view all pieces from this extraordinary collection, click here.

We’re seeing flowers everywhere, and we couldn’t resist bringing them indoors.

For more blooming summer ideas, click here.