The Most Luxurious Shopping Party Ever: Swank Brands Court Houston’s Chicest at a Stunning Galleria Dinner

How sweet it was when The Galleria and PaperCity joined hands for a pre-holiday celebration of all things luxe with the focus on several of the swank shopping mecca’s top brands. The carefully curated guest list represented top clients from Valentino, Bottega Veneta, Céline, The Webster, Tiffany & Co. and Neiman Marcus.

The chic group gathered behind the velvet ropes outside of Neiman Marcus for cocktails, pop-up designer vignettes and midweek schmoozing. The champagne flowed while Jenny Harris, Simon southwest regional vice president of marketing, Chris Lane, director of marketing and business development for The Galleria, and Megan Bailey, luxury retail manager, were joined by PaperCity editor in chief Holly Moore and PaperCity publisher Monica Bickers in welcoming the well-heeled throng.

Of the trés chic gathering , Lane noted, “This season, we wanted to create a bespoke event that offered a luxury moment of discovery at The Galleria. We sought avenues for our guests to interact with fashion and our brands in a unique and intimate setting.”

The fashion vignettes were a hit with several of the guests picking up to-die-for items, including Brian Teichman with Andrew Cordes selected a smashing cocktail jacket for Teichman’s mother. Jana and Scotty Arnoldy were spotted checking out a few of the au courant pieces as well.

Following cocktails featuring Snow Leopard Vodka, guests ascended via escalators to the second level where a dining salon was created inside a luminous tent of flowing silken panels. The 65 guests were seated at one grand table that was dressed in endless bouquets of white flowers and shimmering candles. And at each place a prized party favor — a personalized metal valet card for free valet parking throughout The Galleria for one year. Indeed, how sweet it was.

A Fare Extraordinaire was behind the multi-course dinner that included King Salmon Tartare, brioche-crusted wild caught halibut, a Calvados apple brandy sorbet and an orange blossom panna cotta dressed with candied pistachios and edible flowers.

Fashion forward: John and Becca Cason Thrash, Janet Gurwitch, Dancie and Jim Ware, Diane Lokey Farb, Sverre and Carrie Brandsberg-Dahl, Ceron, Tarek El-Bjeirmi, Duyen and Marc Nguyen, Francine Ballard, Kristy Bradshaw, Tatiana Massey, Allison Poarch, Isabel David, Greggory Burk, Claire Cormier-Thielke and Chris Goins.

And for those who RSVP’d ‘yes’ to this seated dinner and did not show, we have your names too. But we won’t embarrass you.