Despite the bows, bells and blinking lights clogging store aisles in September, everybody in Houston knows the holiday season officially begins with the Houston Ballet Nutcracker Market. The 5,000 shoppers flooding the Candy Cane Lane-themed market for the Wells Fargo Preview Party Wednesday were armed with shopping bags, gift-giving lists and lots of holiday cheer.
Market chair Cynthia Brown and Preview Party chair Lynda Transier created a nostalgic nod to Christmas past, while taking a modern approach to prepping for the record-breaking crowds.
“We wanted something old fashioned and Candy Cane Lane reminded me of a sweet, old-fashioned Christmas,” Brown said.
“It’s the biggest fanciest holiday cocktail party on the planet."
The annual event is one of the largest yet, featuring 300 vendors from 33 states selling everything from holiday décor and toys to hand-crafted wine accessories and gourmet foods. Organizers knew Houstonians were in a festive mood, but the sheer number of tickets sold for the preview party was stunning.
“Every year we think this is the year that the market is going to plateau, but it just keeps going up and up,” Transier said. Transier knows all about the Nutcracker Market’s history. As a child her son, Chris Transier, attended the market with her and was even a model in the fashion shows held Thursday and Friday of market.
“They put me in all these horrible sweaters,” Chris Transier joked. “I’m still not over it.” Despite the questionable fashion moments, Transier and his wife Christine are active Houston Ballet supporters and Christine serves as the current chair of Ballet Barre, the young professionals group.
Tall flat boots and ballet flats were the footwear of choice as women streamed into Reliant Center heading to one of the multiple bars and the buffet lines serving dishes perfect for the holiday table like roasted turkey and beef and a mashed potato and sweet potato bar.
The evening is was one of Houston Ballet executive director Jim Nelson’s favorite nights of the year.
“It’s the biggest fanciest holiday cocktail party on the planet,” Nelson said. “It’s fun every year, it never gets boring.”
The Nutcracker Market continues through Sunday at Reliant Center. Proving that shopping is indeed a sport, many women prep for the market with tailgating in the parking lot all four days of the event, sipping mimosas and planning their purchases.
Wednesday evening we spotted Roseann Rogers, Jeff Shell, Lenny Matuszewski, Stephanie Moore, Shannon Michaelis, Wendi Junod, Emily Voorhees and Yasmine Haddad frolicking on Candy Cane Lane.
Victoria Jezic-Keller, left, and Whitney Garibay at the Nutcracker Market preview party.
