For 30 years, Tom Mathieu has been the florist of choice for many of Palm Beach’s most illustrious households. Over time, he has built an exceptionally loyal clientele, filling their homes with flowers that reflect his singular artistry. He has worked with some clients for so long that they now speak the same language: all they need to give him is a date, and he’ll do the rest. Here, Mathieu shares the signature arrangements ordered by some of Palm Beach’s most elegant women.
Estée Lauder
Red Carnations, White Chrysanthemums (featured image)
When I first started my business, Mrs. Lauder was one of my very first clients. She loved to entertain, and she did it often. She had a penchant for large arrangements of a single, simple but beautiful flower: white chrysanthemums in a large bowl, red carnations in a giant vase. They may seem old-fashioned now, but at the time they were all the rage. She loved flowers that lasted a long time and created bold pops of color in rooms with more muted tones or light woods, like her library. To this day, I still do the house when guests arrive, and it brings back so many memories.
Annette Tapert Allen
Yellow Miniature Callas, Jonquils, Blue Gentiana, and Candlelight Roses
As a writer and journalist, Annette has a wonderful eye and gathers the most interesting group of people at her dinner parties. I make flower arrangements at her house every week. She gravitates toward small, colorful arrangements, which she moves around as she pleases the moment my foot is out the door. This particular assortment of yellow miniature callas, jonquils, blue gentiana, and Candlelight roses plays off a certain iconic painting of flowers hanging in her living room. If you know, you know.
Carol Mack
White Tulips, Hyacinths, and Allium
A first-class entertainer, Carol has two rules when she is in Florida: one type of flower per vase, and always white. Dark and moody arrangements are for New York, she says. In Palm Beach, she wants her florals to be bright, clean, and tropical. Simple white orchids, garden roses, or hydrangeas arranged with a very light hand are usually her preference. Their simplicity is what makes them so elegant.
Heidi McWilliams
Green Cymbidium Orchids
Heidi is a lover of every type of orchid. It is her signature flower. Every week, she receives a long, low centerpiece of green cymbidium orchids, which she places on her husband’s desk. Her entire house is organized around orchids, with each room devoted to a different color and featuring an arrangement of a single variety. They are beautiful, long-lasting, and tropical, and I know better than to mix in a spring flower.
Kathy Rayner
Yellow Roses, Green Miniature Hydrangea, Orange Pincushion Protea, “Green Trick” Dianthus, “Pink Floyd” Roses, and Blue Gentiana
Color, and plenty of it, please! Kathy’s home, a Moroccan paradise designed by Peter Marino, is a gem lush with tropical hues, and her flower arrangements follow suit. She loves color-blocked centerpieces of miniature hydrangea, orange pincushion protea, Pink Floyd roses, and blue gentiana. When she entertains, several appear on the table at once. Strong, bold, exotic, and entirely her own.
Aerin Lauder
Multicolored Phalaenopsis Orchids
Aerin’s signature, both in her stores and in her home, is an arrangement of multicolored phalaenopsis orchids, ranging from vibrant pinks to the softest yellows. Unlike her grandmother, Estée, Aerin loves mixing colors. Yet the connection between them is unmistakable: the same elegance, the same generosity, and the same understanding that a beautiful room is a gift to the people in it. She loves entertaining and has that rare ability to make every guest feel completely at ease in her home.
