Houston’s Best Dressed Revealed: 10 Stylish Women Make the Coveted 2017 List

The revered Houston Chronicle Best Dressed event celebrates a milestone anniversary in 2017 — 35 years of anointing H-Town swans with the highly-coveted sobriquet of “Best Dressed.” The anniversary salute began Wednesday night in the Neiman Marcus couture salon where more than 100 gathered for the big reveal.

Before Houston Chronicle chairman Jack Sweeney announced this year’s honorees, Isabel David and Kristy Bradshaw, chairs of the March 23 luncheon, encouraged guests to participate in the event that throughout its tenure has benefitted the March of Dimes.

In acknowledgement of this milestone, the Best Dressed fundraising effort was joined by new sponsors — the Woman’s Hospital of Texas, represented on this night by CEO Ashley McClellan, and The Giorgetti (the swank Upper Kirby District condo project) represented by Will Stolz.

As champagne flowed and anticipation built, Sweeney took the microphone to introduce the happiest women in the city (the happiest at least on this night).

Taking bows for their third time on the Best Dressed list, which catapults them into the envied Hall of Fame ranks, were horsewoman Jana Arnoldy, KTRK Channel 13 news anchor Gina Gaston Ellie, philanthropist Carol Linn, and publisher Lisa Holthouse.

The remaining six honorees are newbies to the Valhalla of society media attention — the sexiest woman in Houston Jessica Rossman (no one knows better than her partner, former Continental Airlines chairman Gordon Bethune), the avant-garde fashionista Carrie Brandsberg-Dahl, life coach and CEO of Project PUSH CleRenda McGrady (wife of NBA All Star Tracy McGrady), marketing professional Mary D’Andrea, entrepreneur Sneha Merchant, and international traveler on a mission and community leader Carolyn Dorros.

The luncheon, hosted by Neiman Marcus, will feature fashions by Italian designer Brunello Cucinelli.

Seen: Merele Yarborough, Susan and Dick Hansen, Diane Lokey Farb, Mike Linn, Darcy Wells, Edward Sanchez, Alina Garcia, Grace Kim, Gordon Bethune, Michael Holthouse, Lindley Arnoldy, Gina Bhatia, Dr. Mark D’Andrea, Phyllis Willams, Dr. Connie Faro and Rosemary Schatzman.