Beautiful People, Beautiful Party

Millions in diamonds tantalize glamorous crowd at swank black-tie dinner party

With millions in Van Cleef & Arpels diamonds on display and a heady crowd that could afford the rare cache of glitz, this was a black-tie dinner party to remember.

Yes, the oh-la-la factor reached stratospheric levels at the home of John and Becca Cason Thrash where the French fine jewelry house toasted the opening of its River Oaks District store. Although the jewel box officially opened several months ago, Van Cleef & Arpels saved a glorious spring night for the celebratory soirée that doubled as a fundraiser for Houston Ballet.

So important was this evening that Van Cleef creative director and CEO Nicolas Bos flew in from Paris along with fashion designer Gaspard Yurkievich, who creates the gowns worn by models for the jewelry house including the sleek evening dresses worn on this evening. Van Cleef CEO for the Americas Alain Bernard also flew in for the party as did River Oaks District developer Dene Oliver (seated next to the ever-glam Suzanne Saperstein, who recently relocated from Los Angeles to Houston.)

"We have known Becca for a very, very long time — like the whole world," Bos said, connecting the dots on the evening. "And we told each other that the day we have a sales presence in Houston, we will celebrate that together . . . And we have a whole history with the world of dance and ballet which is inspiration for us."

The party began at sunset in the formal garden beneath a bower of crape myrtles where guests including Lora and Dr. John Clemmons, Phoebe Tudor, and Nidhika and Pershant Mehta glided on the wave of evening elegance. Setting the pace for the black-tie sophistication was the hostess herself — La Becca in a stunning, gilded Naeem Khan gown.

"We at Van Cleef & Arpels thought we knew about taste and parties and philanthropy, (pause) and then we met Becca," Bernard told the gathering of 170. Indeed, she continues to set the standard for grand parties, often with a philanthropic bent. This party raised $130,000 for Houston Ballet making it a very happy night for artistic director Stanton Welch and general manager Jim Nelson.

As soon as the brief speeches and live auction were over, Becca slipped out of the figure-hugging gown and into an Alexander McQueen tunic, allowing plenty of room for indulging in the City Kitchen dinner. Guests swooned over the warm asparagus starter, the sword fish main course and the to-die-for desserts that had guests tugging at one another over the lemon tart and the pecan ball.

Among those fairly salivating over the vitrines filled with priceless diamond and gem creations were Gina and Dr. Devinder Bhatia, Allison and Troy Thacker, Rania Daniel, J.D. Adamson and Tony Gibson, Ceron and Todd Fiscus, Annoshea and Alan Taghdisi, Roya and Massoud Taghdisi, and Susanne Byram and Terry Verbecke.

And cutting their own glamorous swath through the scene was Duyen Hguyen with her glamazon daughters Lauren and Misha Nguyen.

Nicolas Bos, Pierre de Saint-Albin, Becca Cason Thrash, Alexandre Bader.

dinner fundraisers luxury

Two-Stepping Bash

Country tunes and Houston's charitable hearts rock for Dec my Room

Photo by Daniel Ortiz

Jacob Mansfield, Grace Ward, and Kendyl Mansfield.

A bustling crowd kicked open the doors of the House of Blues for the Eighth Annual "Kick Up Your Boots for Kids" bash, all in support of Dec My Room. The night was set ablaze by the toe-tapping tunes of country stars Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen, transforming the venue on October 24 into a jitterbug jamboree and creating an atmosphere brimming with joy.

Event chairs Laurel Bashaw and Dodi Willingham and founders Kendall Plank and Susan Plank were thrilled about how the extra funds will turbocharge their mission. Since 2007, Dec My Room has adorned nearly 18,000 hospital rooms across 178 institutions, delivering personalized coziness like a warm blanket to pediatric and young adult patients.

Emcee and auctioneer David Ackel kept the energy high as generous Houstonians vied for coveted treasures. Standouts included rare Pappy Van Winkle bourbon bottles and a glimmering necklace from Lugano. A wine and whiskey dinner hosted by Federal Grill’s Matt Brice saw bids skyrocket, leaving winners over the moon. The grand finale was a private management hunt at Sycamore Springs Ranch in Kerrville, Texas.

With over 250 attendees two-stepping and $350,000 raised, the event proved to be a night where generosity danced hand in hand with a rockin’ good time. In the crowd were Laurie and Tracy Krohn, Stacey and Al Lindseth, Mike Plank, Rachel and Tom Regan, Ericka Bagwell, Aimee and Wynne Snoots, Carley and Mike Stasney, Grace and Steven Ward, Monica and Jed Skeet, Marie and Joseph Flanigan, Jessica and Ryan Getz, Denise and Brett Mears, Kiki Wilson, Peggie and Kyle Pentecost.