How They Wear it: Lynn Wyatt

Houston socialite Lynn Wyatt is not only a charter member of the international jet set but she is also considered one of haute couture’s most glamorous and loyal customers. Frequently appearing at charity galas (there is not a major event in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London or Paris that she’s liable to miss) Mrs. Wyatt can often be seen in the pages of Vogue and W in couture’s latest creations.

For decades she was also single handedly responsible for putting Houston on the international social map. During the height of the oil boom in the 1970s and early '80s, the Wyatt mansion witnessed a string of parties for the likes of Princess Grace, Bill Blass, Mick Jagger, and Elton John amongst many others.

It has been said that Wyatt's staying power as a reigning socialite is due largely to her ability to create an image that evokes both old and new money. Wyatt herself didn’t come from enormous wealth, but acquired it through her marriage to Oscar Wyatt, an oil and natural gas tycoon. Despite her modest background she never gives off the impression of being nouveau riche. At society gala’s, amid a sea of taffeta gowns and flashy jewels, she can be found in a designer’s most streamlined creations, often accessorized with a single broach of expertly cut diamonds. She is a woman with that rare ability to not only carry couture clothes well but also convincingly, as if she were born to wear them.

Clockwise: Wyatt during a fitting at the house of Lacroix in the early 80’s; In Chanel couture, Fall 2007; In Valentino couture at the designer’s 45th anniversary celebrations in Rome; Pictured with Karl Lagerfeld at the Rose Ball in Monte Carlo; In Chanel Couture, Fall 2006.

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