Skip to content
  • Articles
    • Design
      • Architecture
      • Art & Antiques
      • Books
      • Garden
      • Gifts
      • Interior design
    • Entertainment
      • Entertaining
      • Food and drink
      • Holiday
      • Tabletop
    • Style
      • Fashion
      • Jewelry
    • Travel
      • Nantucket
    • At Home with Max Sinsteden in Rhode Island
  • Shop
    • Home & Decor
      • Accessories
      • Antiques
      • Art
      • Lighting
      • Trays
    • Tableware
      • Baskets
      • Glassware
      • Linens
      • Flatware
      • Plates
    • Fashion
      • Bags
      • Clothing
      • Jewelry
    • Exclusives
      • Tableware
      • Fashion
      • Home & Decor
    • Vintage Italian Embroidered Linen Tablecloth Set
  • Video
    • Exclusive insider tours visiting top designers and tastemakers at home around the world
      VIEW ALL
    • At Home with Max Sinsteden in Rhode Island
    • At Home on Paros with Ceramic Artist Todd Marshard
    • At Home in Charleston with Michael Mitchell
    • At Home with Laura Kirar and Richard Frazier in Yucatan, Mexico
Quintessence

Quintessence

Lifestyle blog | Living Well with Style and Substance

  • Books
    • Books that I have collaborated on, as photographer, with design author Susanna Salk
      VIEW ALL
    • At Home with Dogs and Their Designers: Sharing a Stylish Life
    • At Home in the English Countryside: Designers and Their Dogs
    • At Home with Designers and Tastemakers: Creating Beautiful and Personal Interiors
    • Making a House a Home: Designing Your Interiors from the Floor Up
  • About
  • Articles
  • Shop
  • Videos
  • Books
  • About

Stacey Bewkes

Happy Easter
Entertaining, Entertainment, Holiday, Tabletop

Happy Easter

From my table here on Nantucket to yours, wishing all of you readers who celebrate a very happy Easter. With… Read More

At Home in Paris with Jamie Creel and Marco Scarani
Antiques, Architecture, Art & Antiques, Decorative Arts, Design, Interior design, Travel, Video

At Home in Paris with Jamie Creel and Marco Scarani

Jamie Creel and partner Marco Scarani are men of sophistication and refinement, whose world travels and global collections inform their… Read More

At Home with Sophie Sutton in her Manhattan Townhouse
Architecture, Art & Antiques, Interior design, Video

At Home with Sophie Sutton in her Manhattan Townhouse

When designer Sophie Sutton and her husband purchased their 19th century Manhattan townhouse around six years ago, it was in… Read More

National Place Card Day™
Entertaining, Gifts, Tabletop

National Place Card Day™

Created in 2018 by Karen Suen-Cooper and Martin Cooper, the co-founders of The Punctilious Mr. P’s Place Card Co., National Place… Read More

At Home with Fawn Galli in her 1810 Brooklyn Brownstone
Architecture, Art & Antiques, Interior design, Video

At Home with Fawn Galli in her 1810 Brooklyn Brownstone

While interior designer Fawn Galli’s previous home was only a few blocks away (see our video visit there), she couldn’t… Read More

At Home with Schuyler Samperton in Connecticut
Interior design, Video

At Home with Schuyler Samperton in Connecticut

After years living in Los Angeles, designer Schuyler Samperton decided to trade coasts and move back east. She was lucky… Read More

Virtual Postcard Paris
Travel, Video, Virtual Postcard

Virtual Postcard Paris

In our latest Virtual Postcard video, join us in Paris as Susanna visits the City of Light and discovers that… Read More

Merry Christmas 2022
Entertaining, Fashion, Holiday, Tabletop

Merry Christmas 2022

Hoping all who celebrated had a very Merry Christmas! This year I was delighted to collaborate with The Ark Elements… Read More

The Stylish Traveler
Fashion, Style, Travel, Video

The Stylish Traveler

Many of you have admired over the years the stylish dresses Susanna sports in our video series. We are both… Read More

Happy Thanksgiving and Exciting News
Entertaining, Holiday, Tabletop

Happy Thanksgiving and Exciting News

There is always much to be thankful for at this time of year – family and friends, health and a… Read More

At Home in Milan with Nicolo Castellini Baldissera
Architecture, Books, Design, Interior design, Style, Travel, Video

At Home in Milan with Nicolo Castellini Baldissera

Three years ago, after decades living in London, Paris, Switzerland, the United States and Tangier, designer Nicolo Castellini Baldissera finally… Read More

Virtual Postcard: The Amalfi Coast
Style, Travel, Video

Virtual Postcard: The Amalfi Coast

In our first official episode of Virtual Postcard, join Susanna Salk as she explores Italy’s Amalfi Coast by boat and… Read More

Posts navigation

Older Posts Older Posts
Newer Posts Newer Posts
Illustration of camera

Follow

Some people never seem to run out of ideas. Design Some people never seem to run out of ideas. Designer @maxsinsteden is one of them!

Tag along with me and @susannasalk as we visit Max at his wonderfully inventive Rhode Island cottage.
From clever custom details and ingenious decorating solutions to extraordinary collections and plenty of personality, Max has created a house that’s as elegant as it is relaxed. And he’s wonderfully generous about sharing the thinking behind it all.

Trust me, there are plenty of ideas worth stealing!
Watch the full episode on Quintessence and YouTube. LINK IN PROFILE.
Bridging the seasons with soft pink and amber, a b Bridging the seasons with soft pink and amber, a bevy of dahlias and beautiful hand blown Brume de Verre glasses from @ascherparis
40 years ❤️ 40 years ❤️
A magical retreat on Paros. There’s something so c A magical retreat on Paros. There’s something so compelling about the home of an artist and collector and @toddmarshard’s is as distinctive and personal as his work @Marshard.Paros . The ceramic artist has filled his stunning home with art and collections gathered over a lifetime. Our latest At Home With is now live - LINK IN PROFILE

Architecture: ALONI | Architects — Elena Terzi @iaveria & Dimitris Popotas
Nantucket baskets are suddenly everywhere this sum Nantucket baskets are suddenly everywhere this summer — filling Instagram feeds, appearing in the pages of The New York Times and garnering attention in publications around the world. Coveted by collectors and a whole new generation of enthusiasts, these iconic baskets are having an undeniable moment. Yet behind all the current excitement is a fascinating story of history, tradition, ingenuity and exceptional craftsmanship.

Five years ago, I had the privilege of making this film with @Mary_emery_design, Director of Heritage Craft for the @nantuckethistoricalassociation , exploring the history and evolution of Nantucket lightship baskets through the people who know them best. We visited master basket makers Karl and Susan Ottison, Tim Parsons and Nap Plank, and heard about legendary maker José Reyes from his son-in-law, Maurice Gibbs. We also spent time with Nantucket scrimshander Michael Vienneau, whose work illustrates another chapter in the continuing evolution of the basket.

The film was made at the time the Nantucket Lightship Basket Museum became affiliated with the Nantucket Historical Association, bringing its extraordinary collection — and the stories and traditions it represents — into the care of the NHA.

With Nantucket baskets now capturing the attention of an entirely new audience, it seemed the perfect time to revisit the film and celebrate the remarkable makers, history and craftsmanship behind this enduring Nantucket tradition.

Watch the full film at the link in bio.
© 2026 Quintessence Design LLC
Site design by The Beaux Arts Digital
FAQ & Shipping Terms of Use Privacy Policy
X Illustration of hand
Never Miss A Post
Get insider access to the most inspiring and informative design stories straight to your inbox. Satisfy your style curiosity, quench your sophisticated shopping thirst and scratch your discerning need-to-know itch - sign up so you never miss a thing.