Garden Design - Inside & Out: Butter Wakefield & Rita Konig in Conversation
A two-time RHS Flower Show winner, Butter has been designing gardens for over 20 years. Join Butter in conversation with acclaimed designer Rita Konig for a truly unique discussion on garden design. Life-long friends, Butter was recently commissioned by Rita to create the courtyard garden of her new London townhouse, and in this engaging talk will give invaluable insights into the process. Offering a host of advice from planting scheme concepts, to sustainable gardening practices and how to successfully link your garden to your interiors, this is a must see for anyone keen to learn how one of the UK’s top garden designers works.
5.45-6.15pm - Guest Arrival
6.15-7.15pm - Talk
7.15-7.45pm - Audience Q&A
*Ticket includes access to the talk with a welcome cocktail and canapés
Butter Wakefield
Butter grew up on the East Coast of America, in Baltimore, Maryland. Her love for dogs, ponies and all things outdoors taught her at an early age the responsibility and hard work that accompanies these pleasures. Her mother, aunt and grandfather were all keen and accomplished gardeners, and she remembers with great fondness wandering around their beautiful gardens as a child, her deep appreciation of beautiful surroundings and passion for gardening is a family inheritance running deep in her veins.
Butter trained at the English Gardening School (1997/98) completing the Year Diploma Course in Plants and Plantsmanship, and winning two prizes. More recently she graduated from The London College of Garden Design (2013/14) with a Merit Commended. Originally she worked as an interior design assistant at Colefax and Fowler on Brook Street where she was trained in the world of decorative interiors. It was there that her love of the creative process took hold as she learned about scale, texture, pattern, colour and the principles and practices of design.
Butter Wakefield Garden Design is a small design studio, offering a very unique and personal service. Butter has over 20 years of experience creating many inspirational and purposeful gardens of all sizes both in London and beyond. Butter has just launched her first online video course Small Garden Design with Butter Wakefield with Create Academy.
Rita Konig
Rita Konig has worked as an interior designer & design journalist for over 20 years in both the UK and in the US, regularly included within Architectural Digest’s annual AD100 as well as ELLE Decor’s prestigious A-List, both of which recognises the best in global design talent. Most recently Rita has been honoured to receive the Condé Nast House & Garden Designer of the Year Award for 2024.
Known for her fresh, traditional style, with a crisp and relaxed air, Rita’s interiors layer colour and texture, creating a calming environment of old and new. Her rooms are comfortable, thoughtful and luxurious, resulting in a warm and well-loved space. Rita’s clients are the cornerstone of her design approach and every project is based on a thorough understanding of the individual brief. Working on both commercial and residential projects globally, Rita creates interiors that go beyond current trends and reflect the style and lives of the people who live there.
Rita is passionate about sharing her expertise and empowering people to decorate and design their homes themselves. She has written design advice columns for more than 20 years for titles including British Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar US, The Wall Street Journal, The Telegraph and House & Garden. In 2019 Rita launched her first hugely successful online course with Create Academy – ‘Rita Konig’s Ultimate Guide to Interior Design’ – followed by ‘The Advanced Guide To Interior Design’ in 2024. Rita now also offers 1:1 private video consultations with clients via The Expert.
Working closely alongside brands she uses regularly as part of her design projects, Rita has also worked on product collaborations with luxury names including The Lacquer Company & Oficina Inglesa.
Learning is joyful, empowering and transformational.
This Autumn we go back to school, launching ‘Create Academy Presents’ - an exclusive partnership with Thyme.
A series of in person talks, workshops and events with Create Academy instructors. Explore lessons in interiors, gardens, food & wine and craft, another string to the colouring in of Thyme building creative confidence and inspiring you to make more, do more and love more.
Join us on a journey of joyful learning.
About Create Academy
Create Academy is on a mission to help you build your creative confidence and live a more creatively fulfilled life. Through beautifully curated video courses, they give you unprecedented access to the expertise of today’s best designers, makers, gardeners and chefs - allowing you to unlock your creativity whenever and wherever you want.