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
    • Private video
  • Shop
    • Home & Decor
      • Accessories
      • Antiques
      • Art
      • Lighting
      • Trays
    • Tableware
      • Baskets
      • Glassware
      • Linens
      • Flatware
      • Plates
    • Fashion
      • Bags
      • Clothing
      • Jewelry
    • Exclusives
      • Tableware
      • Fashion
      • Home & Decor
    • Blue Carnation Hexagonal Dinner Plate
  • Video
    • Exclusive insider tours visiting top designers and tastemakers at home around the world
      VIEW ALL
    • Private video
    • Private video
    • 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

Videos

Quintessence provides exclusive insider access to top designers and tastemakers at home around the world. Tag along with Quintessence founder Stacey Bewkes and series host Susanna Salk for the most inspiring interiors, design and style. You'll feel like you're right there with us! Subscribe so you never miss a thing!
SUBSCRIBE
At Home and Around the World with Susan Walker and Ali MacGraw for Ibu
Art & Antiques, Design, Fashion, Interior design

At Home and Around the World with Susan Walker and Ali MacGraw for Ibu

Susan Walker has long walked the line between style and substance. With a spiritual soul, curious mind and educated eye… Read More

It’s a Dog’s Life with Jonathan Adler – a New Video Series!
Design, Interior design, Video

It’s a Dog’s Life with Jonathan Adler – a New Video Series!

It’s no secret that many of us who have a passion for the world of beauty and design are also totally devoted to… Read More

Join Us in Boston, Around the World and At Home
Interior design, Style

Join Us in Boston, Around the World and At Home

In addition to actually shooting our videos, Susanna Salk and I have been sharing our behind the scenes experiences of making the series… Read More

Setting the Table with Marian McEvoy – A New Video Series
Art & Antiques, Design, Interior design, Video

Setting the Table with Marian McEvoy – A New Video Series

Regular readers know my longstanding love of tabletop so I am especially thrilled to announce the debut of a new… Read More

At Home with Susanna Salk and Hunt Slonem
Art & Antiques, Design, Interior design

At Home with Susanna Salk and Hunt Slonem

There are few places where inspiration and art are so fluidly connected as in the former Chelsea loft of Hunt… Read More

At Home with Susanna Salk and Sara Ruffin Costello
Architecture, Art & Antiques, Interior design, Travel

At Home with Susanna Salk and Sara Ruffin Costello

As the founding Creative Director of the original beloved Domino magazine, Sara Ruffin Costello proved she knew a thing or… Read More

A Major Milestone – One Million Views!
Style

A Major Milestone – One Million Views!

For those of you not on social media, I am thrilled to share that Susanna’s and my video series has… Read More

At Home With Alexa Hampton in Manhattan
Design, Interior design

At Home With Alexa Hampton in Manhattan

Designer Alexa Hampton needs no introduction. With a successful interiors career since 1998 as owner and president of her father’s legendary… Read More

At Home with Susanna Salk and Nathan Turner & Eric Hughes
Architecture, Food and drink, Interior design, Travel

At Home with Susanna Salk and Nathan Turner & Eric Hughes

While both California natives, it took designers Nathan Turner and Eric Hughes years before they would have a Malibu beach… Read More

At Home with Susanna Salk and Mark D. Sikes
Interior design, Travel

At Home with Susanna Salk and Mark D. Sikes

Those of you who follow Mark D. Sikes on his popular blog and Instagram feed know that he is all… Read More

At Home with Susanna Salk and Katie Ridder and Peter Pennoyer
Architecture, Books, Design, Garden, Interior design

At Home with Susanna Salk and Katie Ridder and Peter Pennoyer

Husband and wife, architect and interior designer, California girl and New York City boy. This combination wouldn’t necessarily bode well for… Read More

At Home with Susanna Salk and Brooke & Steve Giannetti on Patina Farm
Architecture, Garden, Interior design, Travel

At Home with Susanna Salk and Brooke & Steve Giannetti on Patina Farm

Patina Farm is the realization of a dream that many only fantasize about. Living on a small lot in suburban Santa Monica, California,… Read More

Posts navigation

Older Posts Older Posts
Newer Posts Newer Posts
Illustration of camera

Follow

Charleston has a way of drawing people back again Charleston has a way of drawing people back again and again—and homes like this remind us why.
Tag along as designer @michaelmitchelldesigner welcomes us inside his gracious home, where layers of history, thoughtful collecting, and a deeply personal approach to design make every room a reflection of both its owner and the city itself.
LINK IN PROFILE.
One of my favorite things about setting a table is One of my favorite things about setting a table is that it never has to begin from scratch.

The most beautiful tables are collected over time—mixing old favorites with new discoveries, heirlooms with contemporary pieces, and the things you’ve loved for years with something that brings fresh perspective.

For this table, I’ve paired PeterDunham + Hudson Grace’s (@peterdunhamdesign @hudsongracesf ) beautiful salad and bread plates and napkins with Blue Carnation dinner plates, table linens, glassware, and flatware from my shop, alongside a few favorite pieces from my personal collection.

I hope this table is a reminder that you don’t need everything to match—or come from one place. The magic is in the mix. Every new piece should make you fall in love with the pieces you already own all over again.

That’s the joy of collecting—and the beauty of a table that reflects your own story.

Shop the table through link in profile
Very excited to be returning to @eleishvanbreems o Very excited to be returning to @eleishvanbreems on Nantucket for a 2 day trunk show next Thursday and Friday! If on island, do stop by! There will be many new introductions you will be the first to see!!
Some homes are beautiful. Others tell a story. Th Some homes are beautiful. Others tell a story. 
The Yucatán home of interior designer @laurakirar and architect Richard Frazier @rwf333 is both -  a masterful reflection of its surroundings, where architecture, landscape, light, and craftsmanship come together in perfect harmony.
Tag along for a visit to this extraordinary retreat and discover how years of collecting, collaboration, and creative vision shaped a house that feels deeply connected to its place. LINK IN PROFILE
Wishing everyone a very happy Mother’s Day! 🌸 Flow Wishing everyone a very happy Mother’s Day! 🌸 Flowers from my thoughtful husband - all else from my shop (plates coming soon - DM to be notified).
© 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.