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Quintessence

Quintessence

Lifestyle blog | Living Well with Style and Substance

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Books

#Jingletweet Countdown Prize No. 1
Books, Design, Entertainment, Fashion, Food and drink, Gifts, Holiday

#Jingletweet Treasure

I’m excited to announce that #Jingletweet has finally arrived. For those of you who haven’t been following along via social… Read More

Martyn Lawrence Bullard Live, Love & Decorate
Books, Design, Gifts, Interior design

Holiday Book Briefs

As I mentioned in my Katie Ridder Homes review, I was honored that my local book emporium, Barrett Bookstore has… Read More

Tintin store in Covent Garden, London
Books, Design, Fashion, Gifts, Holiday

An Updated Classic

I’m definitely liking the direction new editor in chief Jay Fielden is taking with Town & Country. With a stylish… Read More

Katie Ridder children’s bath
Books, Design, Gifts, Interior design

Katie Ridder Rooms

My local independent bookstore, Barrett’s, asked if I would write the design book reviews for their holiday newsletter again this… Read More

A country kitchen designed by Jeffrey Bilhuber from his book The Way Home
Books, Design, Interior design

The Way Home with Jeffrey Bilhuber

Another reason to visit Rooms with a View this weekend is that distinguished designer and author Jeffrey Bilhuber will be… Read More

Lillian-Bassman-Women
Books, Design, Interior design

Preparations Underway

Hello all!! A little change of plans here in the land of Q. Due to an unforeseen, uncooperative and rather… Read More

eliza
Books, Entertaining, Fashion

Lunch with Jamee at J. McLaughlin

Last week I attended a fun book signing/luncheon event at the new J. McLaughlin store in Westport. Unlike the other… Read More

juliska
Architecture, Books, Food and drink

Cottages & Garden’s Innovation in Design Awards

Connecticut Cottages & Gardens is one of my favorite magazines. It isn’t often that a local publication is as stylish… Read More

P1010224
Books

Blogging Buddies and a Brave New World

On the twitter designTV chat this afternoon host Amy of ABCD Design posed a question – what was your favorite… Read More

Video thumbnail for youtube video d-zd_978-q4
Books, Entertainment, Fashion, Interior design, Jewelry

Royal Wedding Redux

For those of you who followed our Royal Wedding contest, you can now enjoy a taste of the festivities vicariously!!… Read More

Screen shot 2011-05-09 at 11.37.53 PM
Books, Fashion

Britta Bell Book Bags

Sounds like an old fashioned tongue twister! Well there most certainly is an old fashioned element to this story, wedded,… Read More

sotheby’s webb coral bracelet
Art & Antiques, Books, Fashion, Jewelry

Living Jewels

Friday I visited the Arts and Antiques Show at the Armory and had the great pleasure of attending a lecture… Read More

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Join us at the Connecticut home of @salomondee , a Join us at the Connecticut home of @salomondee , a house imagined to feel both entirely new and as though it has always belonged to its riverside setting. Designed in collaboration with architect @halardhalarddesign , it balances tradition and restraint—rooted in local vernacular yet quietly unconventional. WATCH AT LINK IN PROFILE
A few of my favorites from the bevy of temptation A few of my favorites from the bevy of temptation at this year’s @thewintershownyc . Dealers tagged in each image.
As we start the new year, taking a deep fresh brea As we start the new year, taking a deep fresh breath with inspiration from Spanish designer @ludovicoporta . See how he creates a sense of calm elegance using curated collections and negative space in his magnificent renovated 18th century palacio. Watch the entire house tour on the Quintessence YouTube channel.
Monday blues with an international cadre of artisa Monday blues with an international cadre of artisanal tableware from our @shopqworthy collection. Shop it all through link in profile.
And the winner of the @academia_de_la_mesa table c And the winner of the @academia_de_la_mesa table contest is… (drumroll please!) this extraordinary table by @Monicabardaji!! She entered on the very last day of the competition and completely won us over! With this table, Mónica has managed to create something both modern and classic, using completely unexpected elements. Nothing on the table is unnecessary and yet nothing is missing. The mix of wood and silver is phenomenally chic, the color and size of the flowers are perfect and we found it extremely elegant! It was a tough choice for us judges, as there was strong competition right on her heels!

Mónica is the lucky winner of the best prize we have ever given (what you see in the last photo), consisting of a Limoges porcelain tableware set, Cristóbal Marine, offered by @raynaud_porcelaines; six hand engraved glasses from @artel_glass; six embroidered placemats with their napkins from @noel_lingedemaison_paris; and six Tokyo Noir cutlery sets from @alain_saint_joanis.

All the finalists’ tables were wonderful, each with something that made it extraordinary, and we can only congratulate you on your creativity and craftsmanship!

Congratulations to Mónica as the winner, but also to all the other participants—each of you, with your tables, makes this possible! Over the coming days we will be raffling off the remaining prizes!!

Heartfelt thanks to the “usual” jury (@azarraluqui @amarosanchezdemoya @bea_satrustegui @carmencarooneill @paz_qb @raulromeropress and @vanessacraccoliving) and to our guest stars @bonadeaofficial @casa__lopez @quintessence (honored to be included) and @vioscooking — it has been a fantastic edition! ♥️
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