Meet rebel rebel, the a-list florists with cult-like status and a flair for entertaining

Madeleine Howell 08 November 2018 4:30pm GMT “Pampas grass used to be a sign that you were a swinger,” laughs Mairead Curtin, as she sips on an Aperol spritz. “But we love it.” Not quite

what I bargained for when I selected the foliage for my novice attempt at spiralling a bouquet at a fizz-fuelled floristry workshop, but there are few rules here at Rebel Rebel HQ. Mairead

is one half of Rebel Rebel, a boutique florist at the vanguard of the so-called “floral revolution”. The other side to the coin is Athena Duncan. The pair are renowned for creating floral

art for the rich and famous; even if you haven’t heard of them, there’s no doubt you will have already seen their riotous, unkempt designs on your Instagram feed. Clients blessed with their

eye for colour include Stella McCartney, The Royal Albert Hall, Sketch restaurant in Mayfair, Dior and The Groucho Club - and then, of course, there was the unveiling of Beyonce’s mysterious

American Vogue cover in September, which saw them create a floral crown for the star laden with peonies, anthurium, fishtail palms, cordyline and peppercorns. > View this post on 

Instagram >  > A post shared by Rebel Rebel (@rebelrebele8) on Aug 12, 2018 at > 8:03am PDT The pair have recently moved from Old Spitalfields Market to Mare Street Market; a new

food hall for Hackney, where you’ll find all-day dining (I tear into the slow-fermented rye biga sourdough pizzas), cocktails, records, and antiques, coffee, a deli and liquor store, and

more besides. But step through the threshold, and you are immediately confronted with Rebel Rebel. Their presence makes for a grand entrance; their flowers, hand-selected at New Covent

Garden Flower Market at the crack of dawn each morning, are a thrilling kaleidoscope of colour, and a sensual array of texture. The style is bold, bright and wild. The setting is inclusive

and welcoming; it couldn’t be further from stuffy. The main restaurant, Open Kitchen, boasts 100 covers, mostly made up of huge sharing tables. And despite their prestige in the floristry

world, an evening workshop with Mairead and Athena is relaxing, hospitable and generous.   “You might love flowers, but not be confident enough to arrange them for yourself,” explains

Mairead during a two hour hand-tied bouquet workshop, as they encourage me to go with my gut, to choose my own stems and lay them out in a line before creating my arrangement with abandon.

The blooms are the centrepiece of the evening, and going home with something you’ve created yourself, pampas grass and all, is a joy (funny looks on the tube home while humming David

Bowie's original Rebel Rebel tune aside) - but this is as much a social experience as a creative one. Next time, I’ll be there having rallied the troops to Mare Street Market for an

evening of Christmas wreath-making and cocktails (Christmas looms large, and the pair are currently working on the festive installation at Sketch in Mayfair, as well as experimenting in

dried arrangements) – but Mairead and Athena aren’t limiting their hospitality to East London. In 2019, following the success of the Hackney evening classes (and their own enjoyment of

them), Mairead and Athena also plan to expand – to Tuscany. There, they’ll continue to cultivate their cutting garden, and host their first summer school at their property in Barga, a

medieval hamlet in the mountains, accessible via a single track train ride from the city of Lucca. > View this post on Instagram >  > September in October. #aster #britishflowers 

#tremblelikeaflower > #rebelrebel >  > A post shared by Rebel Rebel (@rebelrebele8) on Oct 29, 2018 at > 10:56am PDT Like chefs, thanks to social media, florists can now attain 

cult-like status - think Willow Crossley, Philippa Craddock -  so attending one of their workshops is akin to enjoying a cookery experience abroad with your kitchen heroes (Skye Gyngell’s

'Spring in Sicily' culinary experience with The Thinking Traveller received rave reviews, and Michelin-starred chef Merlin Labron-Johnson has now launched a similar experience,

accompanied by Master of Wine Isabelle Legeron). “Our house is in the middle of the wide valley of the River Serchio, in an area called the Garfagnana, a protected area of natural beauty,”

explains Athena excitedly. > View this post on Instagram >  > Story of a flower crown. From garden to train to Pisa. With chilled > prosecco of course! #tuscanyexperience 

#flowerschool #italy🇮🇹 > #tuscanflowers #tuscanwedding #flowercrown #prosecco >  > A post shared by Rebel Rebel (@rebelrebele8) on Aug 15, 2018 at > 9:52am PDT “Last year we

planted the cutting garden, and found that we could forage in the woods and the fields, supplementing it with flowers from the local flower market at Pescia. Our style naturally works well

with the native flora; Italian summer flowers include peonies, roses, sweet peas, snapdragons and stocks.” In both London and Italy, aperitivi and pizza appears to be a common theme of Rebel

Rebel’s events offering - and I can’t think of a better way to enjoy an introduction to floral styling. _THE NEXT HAND-TIED BOUQUET WORKSHOP TAKES PLACE ON 6 DECEMBER (£75). FOR MORE

DETAILS AND INFORMATION ABOUT THE UPCOMING WREATH-MAKING WORKSHOPS, VISIT REBELREBEL.CO.UK/LONDON-WORKSHOPS_