Russian Model Turned Arts Champion Tatiana Massey Sashays Into Houston Best Dressed Ranks For 2nd Time

PaperCity continues its series of profiles on the Philanthropy in Fashion Best Dressed honorees, Houston women who embrace the power of fashion and style by committing themselves to making the world a better place all the while dressing with style and grace. As designer Anne Klein notes: “Clothes aren’t going to change the world. The women who wear them will.” 

Tatiana Massey has long had a love affair with fashion — on her own terms — having been a professional model and having owned fashion boutique Laboratorio, recognized for its cutting-edge labels from her native Russia, London, Paris and New York. Though the boutique has closed, Massey maintains her penchant for the progressive in fashion.

With husband, wealth advisor Craig Massey, this second time Houston Best Dressed honoree is an avid art collector, patron of artists and longterm committed to the Houston Arts Alliance, chairing the organization’s gala for the second consecutive year this fall.

“I make donations to various charity organizations big or small that work with arts, children and people affected by war,” Massey notes. “My overwhelming priority is to support individuals or specific projects in need. It excites me to see the benefits of a donation immediately, right here right now.”

Tatiana Massey’s Faves

Designers: “It’s like picking a favorite book or a song. So many, and they change all the time.”

Fashion icons: Tilda Swinton; Lou Doillon, daughter of Jane Birkin and Jacques Doillon

Fragrance: Niche perfume Beso Pasion by Beso Beach

Favorite hotel in the world: Il Pelicano in Italy

A place that inspires you: Biarritz, the whole of Basque country, Portugal, Copenhagen . . .

Fashion guilty pleasure: Not being fashionable

Carbon footprint reduction: “I do my modest part of trying to reduce carbon footprint at home by recycling garbage, avoiding plastic packaging in supermarkets, buying water in glass bottle, if needed, as I do have a reverse osmosis filter at home.”

Doing It Her Way

False eyelashes or mascara: Mascara

Pilates or yoga: Both

Sneakers or stilettos: Sneakers mainly

Jeans or joggers: Jeans

Feathers or fur: “I don’t buy real fur anymore, but occasionally wear a bit of both here and there.”

The PaperCity Houston Best Dressed honorees were introduced in May, photographed in July by Ivan Aguirre with styling from Michelle Avina, and will be presented at the PaperCity Philanthropy in Fashion Best Dressed Luncheon and Neiman Marcus Fashion Presentation benefiting March of Dimes, sponsored by Children’s Memorial Hermann, on September 21 at the Post Oak Hotel. More information on the gala can be found here.