I like marking the passage of special moments in my life. Sad or happy things, small or momentous occasions, synchronicities, meeting that extraordinary person in the street. Anything worth remembering. The day I was told my corporate job would come to an end, I knew a simple mention in my diary, a token lipstick or a postcard on the fridge wouldn’t do. So I spent my lunch break wandering around antiques stores in the centre of Amsterdam, feeling more than a little sorry for myself. You get the picture: woman seeking refuge from her worried thoughts in the beauty of ancient relics she’d never be able to afford. Especially not without that job. One shop was a quaint little treasure trove of Asian objects where small hand-crafted ornaments caught my eye. They whispered to me of change, of new and beautiful times and I knew immediately they would grace the doors of the guest suites in the château.

They’re Chinese lucky charms, alpaca reproductions of Miao silversmithing. Some of the charms have symbolical meaning. Meet blossom, symbol of spring, marriage and immortality. Or chrysanthemum, for autumn and a happy middle age. Endowed with magical properties or not, these charms will tell guests who are opening the old doors of the château that they’re passing into an enchanted world filled with new possibilities. Here’s to feeling lucky!