For a birthday celebration across the pond, North Carolina floral designer Randy Ouzts joins forces with British floral designer Robbie Honey and good friend and style maven Stephanie Hoppen to create an unforgettable night
When floral designers and style mavens collaborate on a party for one of their own, you can bet the results will be stellar. Such was the case when North Carolina floral designer Randy Ouzts realized that his partner Scott Adams’ birthday would fall during their next trip to London. He mentioned it to good friend Stephanie Hoppen, author of numerous decorating books and owner of a renowned contemporary art gallery on London’s Walton Street, and she insisted on hosting a dinner party to celebrate.
Ouzts, happily anticipating a handful of friends from the States as well as British friends they’d made on previous visits, wanted to flower Hoppen’s beautiful London flat for the occasion, but he found himself in a bit of a tight spot: They’d only be arriving from North Carolina less than 12 hours before the party. However, Hoppen had a plan. “When I heard that Randy wanted to go straight from the airport to the flower market to buy flowers, I said that would be impossible,” she recalls. “It’s vast. If one did not know one’s way around, it could be a nightmare.”
Hoppen then suggested that Ouzts collaborate with another good friend of hers: talented and chic floral designer Robbie Honey, who could buy the flowers ahead of time and help Ouzts arrange them to ensure that every floral detail would be attended to, jetlag or not. The team selected an all-white color palette, perfect for the chilly evening and an ideal complement to the art carefully placed throughout the flat. Ouzts would supply ceramic English bricks of his design to contain paperwhites at each place setting, becoming favors for the guests.
