Fashion meets horticulture: Matthew Williamson turns gardener

There is a pedigree of designers who have that certain savoir faire, a unique signature that extends and reaches beyond the realms of simply supplying the world with clothing and fashion.

From art to product design to home furnishings, fashion designers have long collaborated outside their immediate remit of creating wardrobes, which is why perhaps the hotelier Anouska Hempel tapped London Fashion Week designer Matthew Williamson to re-design the gardens at Blakes Hotel Kensington.

Williamson's pretty floral frocks have been a statement go-to label since the nineties, and seems an apt choice to reimagine the blooms and sumptuous garden embedded in London's first luxury boutique hotel. Williamson is internationally renowned for his highly recognisable signature aesthetic, a mix of print, embellishment and kaleidoscopic colour.

Williamson worked with renowned landscape architects Harris Murray-Wicks Studio to finetune a selection of tropical foliage and lush leafy plants, culminating in a 16-foot flower wall covered with passion flowers and clematis evergreens.

Last year Williamson transformed Blakes' courtyard by incorporating his own brand textiles in collaboration with Osborne & Little and specially curated objet d’arts from Rockett St George. The result is a truly bohemian hideaway in the heart of London.

Blakes Hotel Kensington is located at 33 Roland Garden, London.

Photo credit: Blakes Kensington Hotel garden, courtesy of Blakes