Crimson Lounge was packed for the final event in the Basil Hayden Tastemakers competition, where Nate Berkus presented an oversized $10,000 check at the end of the evening to crowd favorite Rion Stassi for his chandelier, and gave a heartfelt speech about the effect such an award can have on the trajectory of a young designer’s career. I was impressed by the quality of the prototypes that he, Sarah Tranum, and Bryan Lump crafted—each semi-finalist got $2,500 to bring their Berkus-selected designs to life—and they’re all winners in my book!   

BRADLEY LINCOLN

PHOTO: Frank Failin