With the clouds parting for the sun to shine on the Dallas Arboretum on Thursday, April 18, it was obvious that the gods of Mount Olympus were looking favorably on the Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum fundraiser. Perhaps it was due to Mad Hatter’s Luncheon Chair Allison Brodnax and Women’s Council of the Dallas Arboretum Karen Sargent having picked “Gardens Of Greece” as the theme. It surely must have pleased Zeus and Hera to see the flow of guests arriving in Santorini-blue-and-Mykonos-white, headdresses laden with jewels flowers, cakes and statues and Medusas snaking attention from toga-draped Greek goddesses.
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However, before making it into the day’s version of The Garden of the Hesperides, guests first had to check in. As Sharon Ballew oversaw the operation, at times the lineup was four-deep. With brief breaks in the waves of arriving guests, perhaps one reason for the slow check-in was due to the addition of adding both wristbands and name tags. But the added step helped prevent the infamous crashers and helped hat judges ID notable entries in the day’s competition.
Upon entering the Ginsburg Family Plaza, the guests were rewarded with flutes bearing Greek Mojitos and Santorini Sunrises and trays offering spanakopita triangles and people watching and being watched. And watching there was, especially for the day’s hat category judges (Esé Azénabor-Grembowski, Sabina Carr, Patti Flowers, Kristen Gibbins, Nathan Johnson and Kameron Westcott) who were perched on multi-tiered staging as guests vied for their nods of approval.
While the one-on-one greet-and-judge went swimmingly, the showstopper of the day was Reagan Pace‘s “My Greek College Life” group, which had judges tossing pink ping-pong balls at the multi-tiered levels of cups atop the groups’ headgear.
After making a pass by the judges, guests were ready for their stop at the photo booth.
But one can only sip, nibble and see-and-be seen so long with the day’s humidity and temperatures rising into the 80s. So, the crowd didn’t hesitate to head into air-conditioned Rosine Hall for the day’s program.
After a welcome by emcee Cleo Green, Karen and Allison, the fashion show produced by Jan Strimple got underway featuring NorthPark Center’s Etro, Scanlan Theodore, Ted Baker, St. John and Nordstrom.
Then it was time for the great reveal of the chapeau competition, with the following:
- Greek Mythology — Elizabeth Smith
- Greek Life (Sorority) — MacKenzie Oman and Cindy Williams
- Best Botanical Using Fresh Flowers – Linda Burk
- Olympic Games — Sarah Fletcher, Karen Schaffer and Kristen Scott
- My Big Fat Greek Wedding — Tammany Stern
- Greek Goddesses (a tie) — Deborah McKeever’s Sea Goddesses and Reagan Pace’s My Greek College Life group
As soon as the final winners left the stage, guests adjourned to A Tasteful Place and the terraces surrounding Rosine Hall for lunch.
For more than 100 looks at the day of head-turning guests and NorthPark fashions on the runway, check out MySweetCharity Photo Gallery.