Guest Post: Chayet from Nothing But the Wax, Part I

I am so excited about this Guest Post!  I stumbled upon Chayet's amazing blog, Nothing But the Wax, a few weeks ago and contacted her about using a photo featuring beautiful wax fabric (or "pagne" as it's called in Congo) pants for the Mama Congo Weekend List.  One thing led to another and here you have one of our most exciting, most COLORFUL, guest spots yet. We decided to split it up into two posts: Part I: Q+A and Part II: DIY.  
First, a little about about Chayet in Part I:

Tell us a little about yourself.  Where do you live?  What do you do? 
My name is Chayet, I’m 28 years old, living in Paris and originally from the Ivory Coast.  I work in finance and blog about wax print fabric and African fashion.

What is your personal connection to wax fabrics?  

I’m passionate about wax fabrics, I blog about it and love to find antique beautiful and rare prints. From my point of view, wax is not just about a fabric.  I see it and experience it more as a lifestyle and share it on my blog.

When did you begin thinking about wax fabrics in high fashion/haute couture?

I made the link between wax fabrics and Haute Couture the first time I saw Juanjo Oliva Spring Summer 2010 collection (see pictures below). This collection was just amazing, so classy, so modern. At this time I just began my blog. One year later, Burberry launched its Prorsum Collection, which, I can say, was the beginning of a new trend: using wax fabric in Haute Couture.  Moschino, Gerard Darel, Agnès B, Simonnetta Ravizza etc., all used wax fabrics for their Spring/Summer 2012 collection.  It was like  they were on to a good thing. Wax fabrics was so trendy than even retailers like Etam, Topman, H&M, Esprit etc. did the same.

What motivated you to begin "Nothing But theWax"?

At the beginning, I was just learning to use a sewing machine and I wanted to share with people my passion for wax fabric and my own handmade and homemade creations. Then, I discovered a lot of designers making beautiful clothes with this fabric and realized that they didn’t have the exposure they deserved in media. This was particularly true for African designers. So, my motivation began to make people aware about this new African fashion.

What is your current favorite clothing item made from wax fabric? 

I love this high waisted skirt from Yinkaalli!! It’s bright and colourful!! I can wear it  in winter as in summer with boots or high steels. This skirts allows every style.

 And I’m also in love with Mariah Bocoum's clothing line Les péchés Mignons, in particular with this dress which is so vintage and classy: 

Where do you buy your wax fabric in Paris?

I buy my wax fabric in a well known African district of Paris called “Château Rouge” and sometimes at “Toto”, a shop specializing in African prints. 

Not sure what to do with that beautiful piece of pagne/wax fabric sitting at home? 

Stay tuned for a special DIY by Chayet later today!

*all photos provided by Chayet for this post

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