Friday tip for inexpensive elegance

A great centrepiece will add drama and punch to a dinner party table, but it needn’t cost the earth. Try something simple, like a great bowl filled with seasonal fruit or veg. My favourite this fall is probably a red wire bowl from Ikea ($29) that looks terrific filled with yellow or green apples (see above). You can also put a glass bowl inside it for serving a pretty dessert, such as a Trifle. (Although since I DESPISE Trifle, I'd probably go for a slow-cooked brown rice pudding with toasted hazlenuts, coconut and white choc. Or bitter choc and dried cranbrerries. But you choose your own dessert, my friend -  chacun a son gout, after all!)

I also like the crinkled steel bowls I saw at the opening of the new Urban Barn at 275 King Street East. They start at about $27. This is a wonderful store, btw, and I encourage you to check it out. And watch for their wonderful “Bollywood” pillows in an upcoming Hot Home Products column.

I’ll have more tips on beautiful style that won’t break the bank at the Fall Home Show, which runs from September 30 – October 3 at the Better Living Centre at Exhibition Place. Hope to see you there.