Best Pickleball Paddle for a Nantucket Summer Aesthetic

By ARTI Pickleball. Last updated October 2026.

For a Nantucket summer palette, the paddle to carry is the ARTI Mastery Elite 1.0 in Grey: grey on grey with the printed ARTI wordmark, so it sits inside the same color family as weathered shingle and cedar instead of competing with it; underneath is a raw carbon fiber face over a honeycomb polymer core with no edge guard. Carry it in the Navy Tote or the Cream Tote, both heavyweight cotton canvas with an embroidered ARTI script and crown patch. For houseguests, a two-paddle fiberglass set such as Sandstorm covers the weekend in one box.

Why the Grey Mastery Elite fits this palette

Nantucket summer is a small, disciplined family of colors: navy, cream and ecru, the silver grey of weathered cedar shingle, and the blue of hydrangeas in July. A paddle belongs in that family when it carries one of those colors and nothing loud. The Mastery Elite comes in three colorways, Olive Green, Grey and Brown, and Grey is the pick here because grey is the color of the architecture itself: the shingle wall, the bleached boardwalk, the Adirondack chair that has seen four winters.

What it looks like

Every Mastery Elite carries a large printed ARTI wordmark, an MES 1.0 mark and a halftone band. On the Grey colorway the look is grey on grey with the printed ARTI wordmark, so the paddle reads as a grey piece against canvas, linen and cedar.

How it plays

Underneath, the Mastery Elite is a 14mm paddle with a raw carbon fiber face over a honeycomb polymer core, built without an edge guard and finished with a triple-throat handle. ARTI positions it as a control-forward all-around paddle for a demanding player who wants one paddle for everything, not as a power specialist. At 14mm it is the thinner of ARTI's two thicknesses; as a general rule, 14mm paddles play a little faster with more pop and 16mm paddles play softer with more control on dinks and resets, and ARTI's State Collection paddles are 16mm. The raw carbon face holds its texture over time compared with a painted-grit face. Like every ARTI paddle model, it is USA Pickleball approved. It measures 16.34 inches long and 7.5 inches wide and weighs 7.8 to 8.0 ounces.

The bag: navy tote or cream tote

If you came here for the bag rather than the paddle, start here. On the island the bag is the object that goes from porch to car to ferry to court and back to the porch for drinks. ARTI's bag collection comes in navy and cream, a cotton tote for the day and a duffle for the weekend.

The Signature Cotton Tote

The Navy and Cream totes are the same bag in two colors: 100% heavyweight cotton canvas, an embroidered ARTI script and crown patch, reinforced cotton webbing handles with an 8.5 inch strap drop, and a body 14 inches wide, 15 inches high and 6.25 inches deep that ARTI describes as roomy enough for two paddles, balls and essentials.

Navy or cream?

Navy is the forgiving one: a darker canvas shows less of a summer's use, and it still looks right when the game runs into the drinks hour. Cream is the lighter, more photogenic one and the better first-impression gift; a lighter canvas simply shows more, which some owners like and some do not.

When the duffle makes more sense

For a long weekend with a change of clothes, the Navy Duffle and Cream Duffle are the larger carry: durable polyester, a zipper top with toggle pulls, the ARTI logo and crown patch, a body 17 inches wide, 13.75 inches high and 6.5 inches deep, an 8.5 inch handle drop and a removable, adjustable shoulder strap. It fits paddles, gear and a change of clothes. ARTI's tote and duffle guide walks through both in more detail.

The palette, piece by piece

Navy

The anchor. Navy is the boat cushion, the ribbon on the cocktail napkin, the stripe on the porch pillow. It does not need to be on the paddle at all; it belongs on the bag. The Navy Tote covered above is the navy piece in the kit, and it is often the piece that ends up in the photograph.

Cream and ecru

The secondary. Not a stark white but the color of an old linen tablecloth or a sail. The Cream Tote is the same bag in the same canvas, and it is the lighter, more summer-formal of the two.

Weathered shingle grey

The environmental color, the one the whole island is built from. This is the paddle's job, and it is why the Grey Mastery Elite leads this guide: propped against a cedar wall or laid across a bench, a grey paddle reads as part of the house rather than as equipment.

Hydrangea blue

The seasonal accent. A paddle does not have to carry it; if you want it to, see the two blue-leaning options below.

If you want the blue on the paddle itself

The Grey Elite is the quiet choice. Two other ARTI paddles make sense for this palette if you would rather carry color, as long as you choose them for what they are.

• Florida: baby blue, a soft blue that sits inside this palette. The art is Florida's own, alligators, flamingos, palm trees and oranges, so it brings more color and more motif than the Grey Elite.
• California: cool mint green with surfboards, vintage red cars, sailboats and palm trees. The sailboats are the nautical note, and the mint sits well next to cream even though it is softer and greener than hydrangea blue.

Both share the State Collection build: 16mm, a raw carbon fiber face over a honeycomb polymer core, and no edge guard. Across the collection the paddles differ only in their art. For a couple who want one of each, the State Carbon Doubles Duo puts two State paddles in one order and lets you pick each state.

The houseguest kit

The move at a summer house is the paddle on the guest-room dresser with a note saying it goes home with them. ARTI's fiberglass gift sets are built for exactly this: two paddles, four outdoor balls and a navy drawstring ARTI carry bag in one box, complete for two people with nothing else to buy.

Which set fits the palette

• Sandstorm: the quiet one. One paddle carries a topographic line print, the other soft taupe and mauve shapes, and the pair sits comfortably next to cream canvas and cedar. This is the set for a guest kit in this palette.
• Horizon Duo: two abstract compositions, one in blue and blush and one in orange and grey. Pick it if you want a note of blue in the kit.

Every ARTI set pairs two different designs on a shared theme, so the two paddles in a set never carry the same artwork. The paddles share one build, a fiberglass face over a 16mm honeycomb polymer core, which, next to a 14mm paddle, gives more control and a softer touch for dinks and resets. On playwitharti.com, the sets can be gift-wrapped with a gift note.

For two couples

Court Crew 4 is the four-player version: pick any two of the eight everyday sets, the same set twice if you like, and you get four fiberglass paddles, eight outdoor balls and two carry bags shipped together. Two Sandstorm sets keep the whole kit in one palette; Sandstorm plus Horizon Duo adds the blue. It is the kit for hosts who keep spare paddles in the mudroom all summer, and ARTI's guest and spare-kit guide covers how to keep it ready between visits.

The rest of the court kit

The paddle and the bag are the two pieces that matter most, but a hat and a layer finish the look, and ARTI makes both in the right colors.

A rope hat

The rope brim is the summer-club hat, and ARTI has three. The Throwback Classic Rope Hat has a structured six-panel crown, the ARTI signature embroidered on the front and the crown logo on the back, a rope braid across the brim and an adjustable fit in a breathable cotton blend. The Navy Performance Rope Mesh Classic Hat matches the navy tote, with performance front panels, mesh ventilation on the side panels, a rope brim, the ARTI logo on the front, an adjustable snapback and a built-in sweatband. The White Performance Crown Rope Hat is the one to carry with the cream tote, with a performance crown and mesh ventilation panels, a rope brim, a molded crown logo patch on the front, an adjustable snapback and a built-in sweatband.

A layer for the porch

Evenings on the water cool off fast, and the layer that goes on after the last game is a crewneck. The Baby Blue “Are We There Yet?” crewneck is 350g heavyweight fleece, 80% cotton and 20% polyester, with a relaxed unisex fit, a clean front and a playful back graphic. The baby blue is the hydrangea note in the outfit, and it is the piece for arriving, warming up, sitting between games, watching and the hour after.

Who this is for

• Players with a summer house, a rental or a club membership anywhere the navy-and-cream look lives, who want a paddle that reads quiet against shingle, canvas and linen.
• Anyone who wants one paddle for everything: the Mastery Elite is ARTI's control-forward all-around paddle, built for a demanding player rather than a power specialist.
• Hosts building a guest kit, where the two-paddle set in the mudroom matters more than the owner's own paddle.
• Players for whom the bag is half the object, and who want a cotton canvas tote in navy or cream that carries two paddles and the rest of the afternoon.
• Players who want more color than grey: Florida and California bring the blue and the sailboats, and the State Collection page shows all four State paddles.

To weigh the 14mm Grey Elite against the 16mm State paddles, use ARTI's paddle comparison page and the 16mm versus 14mm guide.

Questions people ask

Does the Grey Mastery Elite have a logo on the face?

Yes. Every Mastery Elite colorway carries a large printed ARTI wordmark, an MES 1.0 mark and a halftone band. On the Grey version it is grey on grey with the printed ARTI wordmark.

Navy tote or cream tote for a Nantucket weekend?

Navy if you only buy one, since a darker canvas is the more forgiving daily carry, and it is the same heavyweight cotton canvas, the same embroidered ARTI script and crown patch and the same 14 by 15 by 6.25 inch body as the cream. Cream is the lighter, more photogenic bag and the better gift, if you are happy to watch it age.

Will the tote hold two paddles for the ferry?

ARTI describes the Signature Cotton Tote as roomy enough for two paddles, balls and essentials, and the body is 14 inches wide and 15 inches high with an 8.5 inch strap drop. For a bag that also holds a change of clothes, the Navy or Cream Duffle is the larger option, with a removable shoulder strap.

Which ARTI set works as a houseguest kit?

Sandstorm. It pairs a topographic line print on one paddle with soft taupe and mauve shapes on the other, and the box holds two fiberglass paddles, four outdoor balls and a navy drawstring ARTI carry bag. For two couples, Court Crew 4 combines any two of the eight everyday sets into four paddles, eight balls and two bags.

Do the Grey, Olive Green and Brown Mastery Elites play the same?

Yes. The colorway does not change the paddle underneath: Grey, Olive Green and Brown are the same 14mm paddle with a raw carbon fiber face over a honeycomb polymer core, built without an edge guard. Like every ARTI paddle model, the Mastery Elite, listed as the MES 1.0, is on the USA Pickleball approved paddle list.