I am happy to have Ajiri Aki who has had a diverse career in fashion and who also launched tabletop website last year as my Parisian of the Month.
Where were your born and where did you grow up?
I was born in Nigeria and grew up in Austin, Texas.
When and why did you move to Paris?
I moved to Paris 7.5 years ago after marrying my Swiss German husband who was already living here. We dated for a year and half long distance before having a big Nigerian and Texan wedding.
You lived in New York City, my hometown, for ten years working in the fashion industry. Please describe some of the jobs you had.
I loved spending my Twenties in The City. I first went there as a fashion intern at W Magazine then got a job working as a men’s fashion editor at DNR, which was eventually folded into WWD. (The fashion industry’s main newspaper.) I basically learned everything working on a weekly publication because I had to go out into the market to meet designers then come back and produce my own shoots and write my own copy. It was the best learning experience. I also got to style lots of celebrities like Boy George and Pharrell. Then I went on to work at Suede Magazine, a short-lived magazine from Time Inc. for women of color. I was the accessories editor, but also styled many celebrities like Lenny Kravitz, Misty Copeland, Kerry Washington, and Joy Bryant. It was one of the crazier fashion jobs that included going to Morrocco on a day’s notice to meet a crew I didn’t know with 5 suitcases of clothes.
You worked at The Costume Institute of The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Museum of the City of New York. What was that like and what are your most significant memories?
Calm and inspiring, which was the opposite of my magazine and styling days, and I was desperately in need of that. I loved every day at both museums trolling through magazine archives and seeing beautiful garments and pieces from the 17th to early 20th centuries. I also got the chance to get to know and work with the legendary Harold Koda and Andrew Bolton. At the MCNY I was the research assistant on a show about Black Style from the 1920s to the present, but kept proposing so many ideas and solutions that I was bumped up to Associate Curator. It was an absolute dream and I got to talk on the phone with LLCool J, meet Diddy, Dapper Dan, and so many famous photographers like Mark Seliger and Albert Watson.
You’ve had such a versatile career, including co-authoring a book about the recently departed Karl Lagerfeld. Please tell us about the book and also your feelings when the great Karl passed away.
Yes there have been so many things that interest me and I am not afraid to take a hard right in my career path and try things. (Of course I get scared but do it anyways.) Working on Where’s Karl? was insanely exhausting but so rewarding. Me and my co-author Stacey Caldwell made Pinterest boards of every single person you see in the book and lists of what they would be doing and who they were standing next to. Everything was so detailed and curated before we passed it on to our illustrator. Even for the cities we would send over loose line drawings and cultural references. So much work!! However it all paid off because the book became a New York Times best seller and Karl loved it!! He was buying up all the books in Paris until we sent him boxes. Then after we wrapped up a 5 city book tour in the States, he sent us on a 7 city European tour to all the Karl Lagerfeld stores. The president of Chanel even requested a custom scene. The whole experience was wonderful.
Stacey and I were so sad when Karl passed away because he was so generous to us and supported our book. We were also clearly big fans.
You started a new business last year, Madame de la Maison. Please tell us about your new venture and the services and merchandise you offer.
Madame de la Maison is a linen and antique sales and rental business. I am in the business of bringing people together at the table with beautiful objects. I rent everything you need for the table such as linens, mix and match antique plates, silverware, crystal stemware, brass candelabras, etc…for weddings as well as private events. You can even rent for your next dinner party of 2! In a few months I will also have a modern contemporary collection of brands we all know and love. I want people to be able to rent items they actually want to own in real life. So many rental companies just offer boring basics you can find at Ikea or Hema and wouldn’t want to buy. I want to be Rent the Runway for home and entertaining. For the online shop I have saved you the time of scouring the flea market or wasting time with online marketplaces with pages and pages of objects. It is a tightly curated collection of objects at price points you can still get excited about.
On your website you say you scour France to find the best pieces. What are your favorite flea markets and brocantes in Paris and throughout France?
I love visiting the street flea markets in Paris, which change locations every weekend. However my real jam is getting in my car and driving around Provence or through the Loire looking for treasures.
What are some of your favorite home and tabletop boutiques in Paris?
There sadly aren’t too many that get me excited or that I don’t feel kinda bored of. I honestly feel like Paris is lacking in this department. In New York there are so many good home stores. I still love La Tresorie and Ailleurs Paris though.
If you could decorate a table for anyone or any event, past or future, who or what would it be and how would you style it?
I would love to decorate a table for a big art benefit dinner and I would play with the shades of the same color to match a painting. I love when I get the freedom to style the table.
Do you have some cool tips about how to easily decorate and dress up your table without too much fuss?
Linens, simple low flowers, and votives add color, ambiance and joy instantly.
What do you prefer about Paris?
I prefer that life in Paris is slow living in the big city.
Last week to see my photo exhibit at Hotel Pont Royal, 5-7 rue Montalembert, 75007 Metro: Rue du Bac
Don't miss it!
I would love to receive a copy of “A Year In Paris”
Thank you!
Posted by: Jean Webster | April 02, 2019 at 01:39 PM