The posh surroundings of The Waikiki Edition's Lobby Bar provided just the proper setting for color block flowers, a leitmotif borrowed from the fashion world. The color block concept is simply a juxtaposition of solid colors, typically contrasting in hue. This statement-making style translates seamlessly into the world of art and design.

(left to right) Brilliant fuchsia and tangerine ranunculuses vie for attention. Oahu floral designer Debbie Hemingway cleverly added a touch of black ribbon trim, a nod to Dutch painter Piet Mondrian’s famous color block paintings. Electric pink gerbera daisies mingle with vivid yellow craspedia capturing the spirit of fashion’s color block trend. Designer Yvonne Chapman used neon green Kermit mums as neat buttons to contain the stems, complementing a handbag by Kate Spade in the same hue. Showy orange Asiatic lilies are mixed with sunny yellow blooms of freesia in beautiful contrast to the azure satin ribbon cuff. Kate Spade's beaded bangles continue the bold color story. A bodacious bundle of purple anemones is contrasted magnificently with delicate blooms of yellow freesia. True to her unique sense of style, Honolulu florist Fong Tagawa employs lavender aluminium wire as an unexpected embellishment

Known for her modern compositions, Fong created dramatic columns of gladiolus stems in a splashy array of colors to accent the stacked petal bowls. These spectacular blooms are named for the shape of their leaves, from the Latin word, “gladius,” meaning sword.  A symbol of strength and integrity, gladioli connote love and infatuation, a figurative piercing of the heart with passion. Mini myrtle at the base of select towers adds an organic twist. A dazzling display of orange Mokara orchids is juxtaposed with chartreuse cymbidium orchids and magenta phalaenopsis orchids in a fashionable bouquet composed by Yvonne Chapman.