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    Under the eye

    Dallas Art Fair finale channels UK at colorful Eye Ball garden party

    Stephanie Allmon Merry
    Apr 22, 2019 | 2:55 pm

    What: Eye Ball 2019

    Where: The lawn under the Eye sculpture at the Joule

    The 411: The sixth annual finale of Dallas Art Fair became a daytime event rather than a nighttime affair when nasty spring weather pushed it down a day, to Sunday, April 14.

    The move proved to be a unexpected stroke of luck, the organizers concluded, as the outdoor lawn featuring Tony Tasset’s 30-foot sculpture Eye was transformed into a sunny, posh British garden party, complete with a curving boxwood hedge maze that revealed surprises like hidden doors, tucked away spaces, and surreal characters.

    Nearly 700 attendees were greeted by an ominous man in a bowler hat and Magritte-inspired cane, and a cheeky gift: a custom teacup “necklace” from Dallas-based Vulgar Teacups with a towering model pouring mimosas, the party’s signature tipsy tea.

    This year’s tone of irreverence and irony became abundantly clear as guests entered past the phrase “Get Lost.” They traveled through custom-built hedge mazes that challenged the idea of perception and space. Once inside the maze, guests were treated to several surprises, including a tiny experiential room with playful shag textures, neon lights, and cherry scratch-and-sniff wallpaper.

    An iconic red phone booth allowed guests to ring a light-up phone hidden within the maze. (When the phone flashed, any nearby guest in the maze could pick up and speak to the stranger on the other end.)

    Also playing with perception was the Ames room photo-op, which created the optical illusion that people standing in the room appeared to be of dramatically different sizes.

    Celebrated local acts took to the stage throughout the day, including singer-songwriters Sarah Jaffe and Kirk Thurmond, '80s yacht-rock tribute band The Rich Girls, and former American Idol contestant Tippy Balady. All-vinyl DJs from The Good Taste Collective kept the party going in between sets.

    Guests dined on whimsical bites that ranged from blue-and-white dipped strawberries to Technicolor-rainbow layer cake to playful lemon trifles in push-pop form, all catered by The Joule.

    “As an outdoor event, the idea of a garden party has always been a natural place to go, and the space practically begs for a maze,” says Jeny Bania, Headington Companies vice president of PR and brand marketing, in a release. “We try to do the unexpected each year by playing with perception. The Eye sculpture is always there reminding me to challenge how we see things — through scale, illusions, and surprising reveals, and even the on-theme UK weather."

    Who: Tim O'Heir, Rob Bradford, Caitlin Ripp, Erin Waks, Chance Weick, Edwardo Flores, Lydia Garcia, Brandon Hartin, Chuck Steelman, Scott Kehn, Eneida Hatch, Jay Sims, Amy Van Cleave, Francisco Rizo, Jenna Owens, Jennifer McGill, Annabel McGill, Logan McGill, Jonathan Merla, Michelle Padgett, Tracy Hayes, Van Hayes, Kendall Thomas, Amber Arnold, Kevin Howard, Jessica Roberts, Daniel Perez, Nerissa Von Helpenstill, Dustin Holcomb, Stephanie Seay, Carlos Alonso-Parada, Nolan Kiser, Bela Cooley, Stephany Bradford, Anna Jordan, Angus Glover Wilson, and Esther Park.

    Jonathan Merla, Michelle Padgett, Tracy Hayes, Van Hayes

    Jonathan Merla_Michelle Padgett_Tracy Hayes_Van Hayes
      
    Photo by Beckley & Co
    Jonathan Merla, Michelle Padgett, Tracy Hayes, Van Hayes
    festivalshotelsgalasmuseums
    news/society

    Celebrity wedding

    Dallas Cowboys cheerleader ties the knot in dreamy wedding in Tuscany

    Stephanie Allmon Merry
    Jun 16, 2025 | 4:24 pm
    Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader Marissa Phillips, Braden Leschber wedding, Tuscany
    Photo by Kseniya Palchi via Facebook/Marissa Phillips and People magazine.
    Marissa Phillips and Braden Leschber wed on June 3, 2025 in Italy.

    Dallas Cowboys cheerleader Marissa Phillips married her college sweetheart, Braden Leschber, in a picture-perfect wedding under the Tuscan sun of Italy on June 3, 2025.

    People magazine got the exclusive on all the wedding details and gorgeous photos by Milan-based photographer Kseniya Palchik.

    Phillips just completed her third year with the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and reportedly cut the Italian wedding trip short to return to Dallas and "buckle down" for the next season's auditions. She appeared in Season 1 of Netflix's hit series America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. Season 2 begins streaming Wednesday, June 18.

    Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader Marissa Phillips, Braden Leschber wedding, Tuscany
      

    Photo by Kseniya Palchi via Facebook/Marissa Phillips and People magazine.

    Marissa Phillips and Braden Leschber wed on June 3, 2025 in Italy.

    Phillips, a Round Rock native, began dating Leschber in 2017 when they were college students: she, at Texas A&M University and he, at Texas Lutheran University in Seguin. They got engaged, fittingly, on the field of AT&T Stadium in Arlington - home of the Cowboys - on August 10, 2023.

    View this post on Instagram
    A post shared by Braden Leschber (@braden_leschber)

    According to People, the couple chose to marry in Italy for two reasons: because of Phillips' proud Italian family heritage and because it was (somehow!) cheaper than a big, traditional Texas wedding. So, they and 75 friends and loved ones jetted off to romantic Tuscany for a destination wedding extravaganza that lasted several days.

    "We wanted to make this celebration as special as it could be and stray away from the typical wedding scene whenever we could," Phillips told the magazine. "We also don’t get a lot of time to slow down and enjoy the company of our friends and family, so we really loved the idea of a destination wedding, where everyone could unplug and spend time together."

    Festivities started Monday, June 2 with a welcome party that included Italy's two most important food groups: pizza and gelato.

    The wedding was held the next day at Borgo Stomennano, a historic estate in the Chianti Classico region, near Florence and Siena. According to the website, the estate's villa and farmhouses are surrounded by woods, vineyards, and olive groves in a tiny village built on ancient Roman and Etruscan ruins that are still visible.

    For the ceremony, People says, the bride wore Katherine Tash's elegant "Luna" wedding dress, featuring a wide-scooped neckline and hand-draped bodice and skirt, from Dallas bridal shop a&bé bridal. To complete her bridal look, she rented diamond stud earrings and a tennis bracelet from Verstolo and wore shoes from Bella Belle Shoes. Her hair and makeup were done by The Styling Stewardess. Bridesmaids wore black dresses from Birdy Grey and Kendra Scott jewelry.

    View this post on Instagram
    A post shared by Marissa Phillips (@marissaphillips__)

    Phillips walked down the aisle to an instrumental version of Lana Del Rey's "Video Games" and Phillips' brother-in-law officiated the Christian ceremony, in which bride and groom exchanged traditional vows.

    "[Marriage] means we are stuck with each other for life, through the good times and the bad, tied together as one under God and what God has joined together, let no man separate," Phillips told the magazine.

    At the reception, guests dined on a three-course plated dinner of Italian favorites, including trofie pasta with arugula and walnut pesto; fagottino (filled pasta) with bufala ricotta and artichokes and pecorino cheese sauce; and pork chops lacquered with honey and chopped pistachios. Dessert was traditional Italian wedding cake, which the couple "made" in front of guests. (A photo shows them sifting powdered sugar on top.)

    Phillips told People that she and Leschber took the food so seriously, they traveled to Italy a year before their wedding for a tasting with their caterer, Il Sorriso Ricevimenti.

    The bride changed into a custom party dress designed by her best friend and bridesmaid, Kathryn Emily of Belvedere Couture, made of fabric, lace and pearls from Phillips' mother's preserved wedding dress. The newlyweds and their guests then danced the night away to the live music of BritPops.

    Marissa Phillips, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders wedding.The bride and fellow Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders performed "Thunderstruck" at the reception.Photo by Kseniya Palchik via People magazine.

    And, in keeping with Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders tradition, members of the squad performed their iconic routine "Thunderstruck."

    Before heading home, the couple and their guests gathered the next day for a "La Dolce Vita"-themed pool party. The new Mr. and Mrs. then slipped away to Lake Como for a quick "mini moon." (They'll take a longer honeymoon at the end of the next Cowboys season, they say.)

    Back home in Dallas, Phillips is not only a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader, but also an administrative assistant at an accounting firm and co-owner (with her sister) of the online Joey Lynn Boutique. She's also involved in the Alzheimer's Association in honor of her father, who died of Lewy Body Dementia in 2021.

    She's also a social media influencer. She went viral in December 2024 for gifting each of the 40 Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders members a Dyson Airwrap hairstyling tool, valued at $600 each.

    “Huge thank you to @dysonbeauty and @dysonusa for helping me pull off the biggest surprise to the girls who deserve it most! All the love,” she wrote in the Instagram caption of a video of the women opening the $24,000 Christmas haul.

    celebritiescheerleadercowboysitalianreal-housewivesweddingweddingsmarissa phillipsvacationdallas cowboys cheerleaders
    news/society
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