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
    • Burleigh, in Good Hands
  • 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 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
    • At Home with designer Pierre Gonalons in his jewelbox Paris apartment
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

Design

Video thumbnail for youtube video wsfe_fpgrl8
Fashion, Gifts, Nantucket, Travel

Stylish Shopping with Susanna Salk and Jill Kargman on Nantucket

Jill Kargman is anything but your average upper east side doyenne. Daughter of Coco and Arie Kopelman, the former president of… Read More

flower magazine logo
Gifts, Interior design

Thank You Flower Magazine

Whether in the garden, home or art and design, flowers are nature’s beautiful bounty, enhancing every aspect of life. Seven years ago,… Read More

Video thumbnail for youtube video idyaj_lpvky
Beauty, Fashion, Garden, Gifts, Interior design, Travel

At Home in the Hamptons with Susanna Salk and Aerin Lauder

Less than two years ago, Aerin Lauder expanded her focus beyond her role at Estée Lauder to launch her eponymous… Read More

Video thumbnail for youtube video xqgyh3t3054
Art & Antiques, Interior design

In the Studio Video with Susanna Salk and Madeline Weinrib

In her eponymous signature designs, Madeline Weinrib has melded the once disparate worlds of art and decor. As the great… Read More

Quintessence blog on instagram
Interior design

Design Video Summer Extravaganza

Throughout the year, as Susanna Salk and I get inspired with ideas for our design video series, our enthusiasm perhaps… Read More

Michael Kors Pre-Fall 2014
Architecture, Art & Antiques, Design, Fashion, Interior design

In Art It’s Called Appropriation

Ever since Natalie Massenet’s brilliant realization that online luxury shopping and editorial content are an ideal match, many have tried… Read More

cabana magazine
Architecture, Art & Antiques, Design, Fashion, Interior design

The Globetrotting Sophistication of Cabana Magazine

In this era of consolidation, cutting corners and mass market mentality, it is a rare pleasure to come across a unique… Read More

John Richard at NYDC
Architecture, Art & Antiques, Design, Interior design, Travel

A Day of Design at the Mayflower Grace

Next Saturday, June 14th, I am delighted to be participating in the first ever Day of Design at one of… Read More

Perry Street Cocktail Ottoman
Interior design

Edward Ferrell + Lewis Mittman Return to High Point Market

Although they manufacture in their own factory only eight miles from High Point, NC, Edward Ferrell + Lewis Mittman, one… Read More

Pierre Frey Broderie
Architecture, Art & Antiques, Design, Interior design, Travel

Welcome Back to the 18th Century at the Louvre

Next week marks the reemergence of the 18th century at the Louvre. In the north wing of the museum’s Cour… Read More

CR Laine Aledo chair
Interior design

The Colorful World of CR Laine at High Point

As VP of Merchandising and Marketing, Holly Blalock, explains, “Color is not a trend for CR Laine. We are committed… Read More

George Stacey
Books, Interior design

Spring Design Books Round Up

While it’s usually the fall season that brings out the blockbuster line up of design books, this spring, a strong… Read More

Posts navigation

Older Posts Older Posts
Newer Posts Newer Posts
Illustration of camera

Follow

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.
August, stay a while. August, stay a while.
© 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.