The seven-months-pregnant Duchess of Sussex celebrated the impending arrival of the royal baby with a spectacular baby shower in New York this week, costing an estimated $500,000 (£380,000) in total.
The extravagant, privately-funded celebrations, which were certainly fit for a future royal, featured a flower arranging class for guests using blooms provided by Upper East Side florist Lady Fleur – and royal watchers are now being given a glimpse at the beautiful bouquets Meghan and her friends put together at the event.
Rather than send the flowers home with her guests however, Meghan, 37, who is expecting her first child with Prince Harry towards the end of April, brought in Repeat Roses, an organization which reworks flower arrangements at the end of events and donates them to charity.
The waste-reducing business has shared an array of stunning images to their Instagram account, which shows workers collecting the arrangements from inside the opulent $75,000-a-night penthouse in New York’s The Mark Hotel.
They then delivered the remodeled bouquets to charities which included pediatric patients staying in the Ronald McDonald House Charities of New York, who described the surprise gift as a ‘ray of sunshine’.
Repeat Roses, an organization which reworks flower arrangements at the end of events and donates them to charity, has shared a glimpse at the stunning flowers displayed at Meghan’s baby shower, which were later donated to patients at the Ronald McDonald House in NYC
The Duchess of Sussex celebrated the impending arrival of the royal baby with a spectacular baby shower in New York this week, costing an estimated $500,000 (£380,000) in total
A photo showing a team member collecting the flower shows the stunning interior of the plush penthouse sitting room, including the $140 (£107) mandarin tree in the background
One photo of a team member collecting the flowers shows a glimpse of the stunning interior of the plush penthouse sitting room, including a $140 (£107) mandarin tree, which was seen being delivered to the hotel ahead of the event, in the background.
Pictures also show the beautiful bouquets, which featured Meghan’s favorite pink peonies, as well as colorful roses, white poppies, red and purple tulips, roses, rhododendrons, and yellow lilies.
Other touching snaps shared by the organization show children and elderly patients at different charities across the city beaming as they pose with the lavish flowers donated to them by the duchess and her guests.
Captioning the pictures, Repeat Roses wrote: ‘We were honored to match the beautiful floral arrangements designed by the Duchess of Sussex and her guests, including host Serena Williams, to a few of our very favorite NYC neighbor organizations.
‘The gesture of kindness brought smiles and an emotional health boost to pediatric cancer patients at Ronald McDonald House New York, cancer patients at the Hope Lodge NYC and to behaviorally and medically fragile men at the Vyse Avenues Program.
‘The flowers brought a ray of sunshine on a cold winter day, and will be greatly enjoyed for the week ahead.’
Pictures show the beautiful bouquets including Meghan’s favourite pink peonies, colourful roses, white poppies, red and purple tulips, roses, rhododendrons, yellow lilies
The organization delivered the remodeled bouquets to behaviorally and medically fragile men at the Vyse Avenues Program, who described the surprise gift as a ‘ray of sunshine’.
‘The gesture of kindness brought smiles and an emotional health boost to pediatric cancer patients,’ the organization wrote, while sharing images of young patients receiving bouquets
The beautiful bouquets given to the different charities were put together during the baby shower, which included a flower arranging class taught by celebrity florist Lewis Miller.
Lewis, who is based on New York’s Upper East Side, has worked with a number of high-end brands in the past, including Chanel, Estee Lauder, Valentino, and Viktor & Rolf.
He is also famous for his guerrilla flower installations known as ‘Flower Flashes’, which see Lewis transforming unremarkable New York items, from trash cans to construction signs, into incredible pieces of art by covering them with stunning blooms.
But on this occasion, Lewis turned his hand to smaller scale arrangements, working with guests to help them fill their own individual vase, all of which were then passed on to charities.
‘We all each made an individual vase,’ baby shower guest and TV anchor Gayle King revealed. ‘And then Meghan, at her request, they got in touch with an organization I’ve never heard of with, Repeat Roses, and they’re all donated to different charities. I thought that was a very sweet thing.’
The recipients of the arrangements certainly seemed delighted by the ‘sweet’ gesture, with Repeat Roses documenting the delivery of each of the vases to different charities in the city on its Instagram account, where it also explained how the flowers are disposed of later on when they have died.
‘Later, we’ll return to collect flowers and vases for composting and recycling to close the loop and ensure a zero-waste experience,’ the organization detailed.
‘Giving back to People + Planet. It’s what we do, and we’re so appreciative to have partnered with for this heartfelt occasion.’
Unlike Lewis, Repeat Roses is not a florist but rather an organization that specializes in collecting flower arrangements at the end of events to avoid waste, while also matching clients with charities they wish to donate the flowers to.
The organization break down the arrangements and break them down into smaller bouquets to hand out to the chosen charities, with prices starting at $1,750 (£1,340).
Sweet! A little girl beams as she received a pretty yellow display of daffodils and various flowers donated by Meghan
Special: This young patient at the Ronald McDonald house in New York couldn’t resist smelling her beautiful blooms, which featured pink peonies, Meghan’s favorite flower
Meghan arrived for her brief weekend in New York last Friday, but kept a low profile ahead of her celebrations.
On Wednesday Amal Clooney and Jessica Mulroney were among the guests who made an appearance at the lavish five-star Mark Hotel in snowy weather.
Human rights lawyer Clooney was photographed walking into the Manhattan hotel in a bright red jumpsuit and gold heels with a black coat over her shoulder.
Canadian stylist Jessica Mulroney, whose daughter Ivy served as a bridesmaid at Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s wedding, arrived with a smile as the snow fell.
Abigail Spencer, who starred in the US drama Suits with Meghan, was also spotted arriving at the hotel.
Other celebrities attending include harpist Erin Hill, fashion designer Misha Nonoo and television presenter Gayle King, and make-up artist Daniel Martin, all close friends of the duchess.
Described by the hotel as ‘A Castle in the Sky’, the 10,000sq ft stunning suite boasts every luxury, including a 2,500sq ft rooftop terrace overlooking Central Park, five bedrooms, four fireplaces, six bathrooms, two powder rooms, two wet bars, a dining room, a conservatory, and a living room that can be ‘transformed into a full-size Grand Ballroom’ if desired by guests.
Repeat Roses is not a florist but an organisation who collect flower arrangements at the end of events to avoid waste, and match clients with charities they wish to donate the flowers to. Pictured: Patients receiving one of the stunning bouquets
Seen: A patient at one of the charities receiving a red tulip plant donated by Meghan to various charities
‘But wait there’s more!’ Repeat Roses shared snaps to their Instagram stories of staff members collecting the plethora of stunning flowers to rework them and deliver them to charities
Earlier in the week flowers were seen being delivered to the hotel, with a single bouquet of pink roses seen being delivered from Upper East Side florist Lady Fleur NYC, thought to be worth up to $400 (£307).
The donation is another thoughtful and generous gesture by the duchess, who is passionate about reducing waste and an active advocate of various charities.
On Thursday Gayle King revealed on CBS This Morning that she and other guests were taught how to arrange flowers at the party, and that Markle then donated those arrangements to various charities.
King’s co-host Bianna Golodryga said: ‘Meghan Markle’s friends threw her a baby shower in New York yesterday, a couple of months before her due date in April’.
‘She arrived at the Upper East Side venue yesterday amid tight security. The party included some big-name guests including Amal Clooney, Serena Williams, and our very own queen Gayle King.’
‘We all each made an individual vase. And then Meghan, at her request, they got in touch with an organization I’ve never heard of with, Repeat Roses, and they’re all donated to different charities. I thought that was a very sweet thing.’
King then added: ‘It just speaks to who she is. She’s kind, she’s very generous. And a really, really sweet person.’
TV presenter Gayle King was seen arriving at the Mark Hotel for the lavish baby shower celebrations and later revealed the group had been taught how to make their own flower arrangements
Dozens of light-pink long-stem roses from Upper East Side florist Lady Fleur NYC were brought into the venue. A bouquet like this could cost approximately $399.95 and was then recycled with various charities
Wow! A 10 foot mandarin tree (approximately $140) was delivered to The Mark on Wednesday morning ahead of the shower. The tree can also be seen in the background of a photo shared by Repeat Roses showing an inside snap of the suite
The friends were seen arriving with bags stacked high with lavish gifts, with security helping to bring the bulkier items into the hotel.
Among the gifts was a $379 (£329) convertible crib by Babyletto, and the guests were thought to have been gifted with 17 Away carry-on suitcases worth an eye-watering $3,825 (£3,315).
Following the fun celebrations, Meghan was boarded a private plane back to London, where she was seen being collected in the early hours of Thursday morning.
On Monday Kensington Palace confirmed that Meghan’s travel for the six-day trip had been privately funded because it was a personal getaway.
Self-made Meghan’s successful acting career and starring role on hit legal drama Suits meant was already worth an estimated £5million before she met Harry.
Following her busy weekend of celebrations, Meghan will have a few days to rest before she departs for an official tour of Morocco with Prince Harry this weekend.
Human rights lawyer Clooney was photographed walking into the Manhattan hotel in a bright red jumpsuit and gold heels with a black coat over her shoulder
Misha Nonoo, who reportedly set Meghan and Harry up on a date, was among the guests seen arriving Markle’s baby shower with a bag by interiors designer Rani Arabella