Inside Meghan Markle’s ‘Beautiful’ Baby Shower Serena Williams Hosted in New York City

Meghan Markle spent her final full day in New York City attending the spectacular baby shower her friend Serena Williams hosted for her in the penthouse suite of the Upper East Side’s five-star Mark Hotel.

A Royal insider shared with ELLE.com that “the shower was a chance for Meg to share excitement of the baby with her closest friends, some of which she hadn’t seen for some time. It was a beautiful gathering filled with love and celebration—she couldn’t stop smiling.”

While Meghan has adjusted to life behind Palace walls, she relishes the time with her nearest and dearest, many of whom live on the other side of the Atlantic in the U.S. or Canada.

Williams took special care planning the perfect party for Meghan: “Serena had made sure all the little things she liked were there: her favorite foods, flowers and music. Everything was so thoughtful and tastefully done,” the source said.

Here, all the details about the afternoon.

The Party’s Guests
Meghan’s guest list was exclusive but featured some of Meghan’s famous close friends and some of her most personal ones. Celebrity attendees included Amal Clooney, CBS anchor Gayle King, Meghan’s Suits co-star Abigail Spencer, Soho House Global Membership Director Markus Anderson, NBC Cable Entertainment Chairman Bonnie Hammer (who gave Meghan her big break on Suits), wellness guru Taryn Toomey, designer Misha Nonoo, stylist Jessica Mulroney, and actress Janina Gavankar. Meghan’s best pals from Northwestern also attended, along with Meghan’s longtime glam squad and the men behind her royal wedding look, hairstylist Serge Normant and makeup artist Daniel Martin.

Absent from the New York celebration was Heather Dorak, one of Meghan’s oldest and closest friends from L.A. who had just given birth herself and her mother Doria Ragland. Ragland is expected at Meghan’s second baby shower in London ahead of the Duchess’s due date in late April.

King, Spencer, Mulroney, Nonoo, and Clooney were photographed arriving to the shower in city’s snow.

The Venue and Decor
Meghan’s party was in the two-story penthouse suite of the Mark Hotel, which normally rents for upwards of $75,000 a night. Williams reportedly viewed a number of spaces before settling on the Mark Hotel, which is frequented by the fashion elite and celebrities.

The penthouse was decorated with beautiful spring blooms. Photos of the flowers arriving at the hotel show an array of pastel florals chosen in pinks, yellows, and pale greens.

The expansive suite has vaulted ceilings, includes four bedrooms and a massive terrace overlooking Central Park and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It also had a baby crib for the party, where guests dropped their gifts, along with a cotton candy machine alongside the five-star delicacies.

What the Party Was Like
ELLE.com understands that Meghan’s baby shower was an elegant, sophisticated gathering for Meghan and her friends to enjoy ahead of her baby’s birth. Dulcet tones of jazz could be heard from inside the private space. No party games or a gender reveal were planned for the afternoon festivities. (Meghan herself told well-wishers in Bristol that she and Prince Harry are keeping the gender of their first child a surprise.)

But there was one activity during the party: A Royal source close to Meghan shared that her guests were looking forward to participating in a flower arrangement session. They were equally eager to sample Michelin-starred celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s cuisine. Vongerichten presides over the namesake Mark restaurant at the hotel.

Meghan, an avowed foodie, was “looking forward to spending private time with her closest friends and visiting some of her favorite restaurants in New York,” a Royal source shared with Elle.com. Meghan ate at the Polo Bar, Ladurée, and Cafe Boulud during her trip.

When Meghan ran The Tig, her lifestyle blog, the Duchess would often share her relationships with various celebrity chefs. Her visit to Cafe Boulud with Abigail Spencer Tuesday had special meaning given that history. Meghan and its chef Daniel Boulud have been friends for years. She documented getting food from Cafe Boulud before on her own social media back in 2016. And Cafe Boulud’s Toronto location was a favorite regular haunt for Meghan and her best friends there, Markus Anderson and Jessica Mulroney, along with the casts of Suits. (Meghan lived in Toronto while shooting the series.)

How Meghan Is Ending Her New York Trip
A Royal source told Elle.com that the Duchess of Sussex had plans to fly back to London tonight. But the unexpected snow shower today on the East Coast may delay her plans. Meghan is understood to have flown privately to New York City, borrowing a friend’s jet accompanied by her Palace protection officer. She spent the weekend at Misha Nonoo’s Greenwich Village townhouse before checking in to the Mark Hotel Monday night.

Meghan will fly Saturday to Morocco with Prince Harry for their three-day royal tour of the country. It will be her third overseas tour since joining the Royal Family.

Source: https://www.elle.com/

Who Is Meghan?

The Duchess of Sussex, born Meghan Markle, married Prince Harry at St George’s Chapel, Windsor in May 2018. The couple’s official residence is Kensington Palace. As well as undertaking royal duties in support of The Queen, both in the UK and overseas, The Duchess devotes her time to supporting a number of charities and organisations. From a young age, The Duchess had a keen awareness of social issues and actively participated in charitable work. Aged 11 she successfully campaigned for a company to alter their television advert that had used sexist language to sell washing-up liquid. Her Royal Highness also volunteered at a soup kitchen in Skid Row, Los Angeles from the age of 13-17. She continued to volunteer at the soup kitchen when she would return home to Los Angeles until the age of 22….Continue Reading…

Charities & Patronages

The Royal Foundation
Since: May 2018 – June 2019
The Royal Foundation of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry is the Patrons’ primary charitable vehicle, and hopes to become a leading philanthropic investor, effectively using its time and resources to create lasting change in targeted areas and geographies, based on need and on the interests of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry. The Foundation will seek to invest in, or partner with, organisations with proven impact, using its profile and leverage to create a multiplier effect in resources, outcomes and knowledge.
Links: Official Site | Meghan’s Efforts
National Theatre
Since: January 2019
The National Theatre’s mission is to make world-class theatre that is entertaining, challenging and inspiring. And to make it for everyone. They aim to reach the widest possible audience, to be inclusive and diverse, and as national as possible. With a broad range of productions in London and across the UK. The National puts some of the nation’s leading artists on the world stage, with productions playing on Broadway and touring across the globe.
Links: Official Site | Meghan’s Efforts
The Association of Commonwealth Universities
Since: January 2019
The Association of Commonwealth Universities is the world’s first international university network, and is the only accredited organisation representing higher education across the Commonwealth. The ACU manages international scholarship schemes (including the UK government’s three major scholarship programmes and The Queen Elizabeth Commonwealth Scholarships), convene universities to address key policy challenges such as gender and equity, climate resilience, and peace and reconciliation, and promote the role of universities in delivering the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Links: Official Site | Meghan’s Efforts
Smart Works
Since: January 2019
Smart Works is a UK charity that provides high quality interview clothes and interview training to unemployed women in need. Women are referred to Smart Works from organisations such as job centres, work programmes, prisons, care homes, homeless shelters and mental health charities.
Links: Official Site | Meghan’s Efforts
Mayhew
Since: January 2019
Funded entirely by public donations Mayhew aims to promote animal welfare by delivering a broad range of community-based veterinary, care and education services in the UK and overseas. By recognizing that animal welfare issues and social welfare issues are linked Mayhew works to protect the bond vulnerable people, the elderly, the homeless and those suffering from mental health issues have with their animals. And by taking their educational initiatives out to the community they have a better chance of helping prevent cases of neglect, abandonment and cruelty.
Links: Official Site | Meghan’s Efforts
The Queen’s Commonwealth Trust
Since: March 2019
The Queen’s Commonwealth Trust exists to champion, fund and connect young leaders around the world who are driving positive social change, serving their communities and providing hope, work and self-employment opportunities for others. As Vice-President of the Trust Meghan will highlight the Trust’s partnerships with young people across the Commonwealth, and in particular its work supporting women and girls.
Links: Official Site | Meghan’s Efforts

Projects

‘Together: Our Community Kitchen’ Cookbook
After working with the women of Hubb Community Kitchen The Duchess of Sussex suggested the idea of a charity cookbook that celebrates the power of cooking to bring people together. Supported by The Royal Foundation and published by Penguin Random House companies, ‘Together: Our Community Kitchen’ showcases over 50 recipes from women whose community was affected by the Grenfell Tower fire. Since the Together cookbook has been published, it has sold 130,000 copies worldwide. The resulting funds means the kitchen has been completely refurbished and is now open seven days a week

Smart Works Charity Capsule Collection
After working quietly with Smart Works for over a year The Duchess became aware of the difficulty of matching up the perfect work attire due to a range of mismatched colors and sizing. It was revealed in July 2019 that Marks & Spencer, John Lewis & Partners, Jigsaw, and designer Misha Nonoo would team up together to design a capsule collection of work wear clothing for the underprivileged women trying to secure employment. They will follow the “one-for-one model” model where an item from the collection purchased is an item donated to the Smart Works Charity.

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