Palace of Palms 

Cabana, Giorgio Armani and World Monuments Fund unite at Kew Gardens’ historic glass houses for a magnificent fundraiser fusing heritage, fashion and design. 

The iconic Palm House and Temperate House at London’s Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, was the backdrop for last night's spectacular Palace of Palms party, an evening dedicated to heritage preservation. Its aim? Raise awareness and support for an important cause: to reduce the Palm House’s carbon footprint and generate resources for its repair and restoration. 

The evening began with guests, including Prince Amyn Aga Khan, Count and Countess Edward and Marina Lambton and Fabiana Marenghi, drinking sparkling rosé wine from Bird in Hand while touring the beautiful glass house. HRH The Duke of Gloucester was spotted prowling on the upper catwalk, as Simon Jenkins inspected the rarest and oldest plant in the world - the Eastern Cape giant cycad, which arrived in Kew in 1775.  

The Giorgio Armani contingent were all dressed by the house: Pixie Geldof and husband George Barnett, Jack Guinness, Charlotte Colbert, Emilia Fox, Kim Cattrall, Philip Colbert, Ewi Shafran, Bénédicte de Montlaur, Blanche Howard and Joaquin Lassala. The Cabana team were also fully decked out in the brand’s finery: it was floor length and opera coats for Martina Mondadori, Francesca Mapelli and Sophie Goodwin. 

Drinks were followed by dinner for 180 guests in the Temperate House, taking place on four long rectangular tables dressed in the whimsical WMF Botanica Tablecloth, designed by Cabana for the occasion, with beautiful botanical-inspired place cards by Fin Fellowes for The Kensington Paperie, designed exclusively for Cabana. Inspired by a Victorian pattern and Cabana's exclusive Ginori Martina dinnerware, a percentage of proceeds from the Botanica Collection will be donated to the World Monuments Fund. 

Attendees were also greeted with a bespoke welcome booklet, lined in the new Botanica pattern, illustrated with an antique engraving of Kew and a pen and ink map of the Temperate House to guide them to their placement.

Music was a charming medley by five members of the young Kannah-Mason family (all dressed in Giorgio Armani), while the brand’s legendary communications director, Anouskha Borghesi, led the charge to Loulou’s at 5 Hertford Street for post dinner dancing, martinis and spicy margaritas.