Waxed Canvas

I've been drawn to beeswax on canvas since my childhood. My father had a painting restauration studio in Nice where I would knock around after school experimenting with bits of canvas and copper nails and watch him work.

As soon as I set my first studio in 2014 I knew I had to try making waxed canvas. I researched and experimented until I was satisfied with a receipe that coated the fabric enough while leaving it flexible enough to work. For the next 10 years I carried on making my own hand coated waxed cotton and introduced natural dyes which helped create a line of bags that were visually very recognisable. These last few years I have allowed myself to work with unwaxed fabrics but it is something I plan to pick up again. There is something I love in the way waxed canvas looks, a utilitarian feel and longevity that is reminiscent of leather.

In the meanwhile, here is a short history of waxed canvas I put together a while back:

Waxed canvas is a utilitarian fabric at heart, created to withstand the harshest of weathers and to last.

Its roots lie at sea, in the shipping history of England. Here is a condensed history of where it comes from that I hope will help you understand the origin of the fabric I make.

Waxed canvas originates from the sailing industry in the form of oilskin in England and Scotland in the 17th Century. Mariners used to grease their sails with a mixture fish oils, linseed oil and wax for performance and durability (wet sails are more efficient than dry sails but their weight slowed down ships).

They also used to make themselves protective clothing out of old sail remnants to protect them at work. The French term "Ciré" – meaning "Waxed" refers to the traditional yellow waterproof coat and waders outfit that used to be worn by fishermen (developed by Edward Le Roy circa 1898).

Even Burberry launched it's own line of lanolin infused garments called "gabardine" in 1879.

The use of waxed canvas sails was adopted by the Royal Navy and the Tea Clippers in the 19th century. In the 1930s paraffin was used instead of linseed oil to wax the sails as it made them lighter, more durable, less stiff in the cold and less prone to yellowing.

Waxed canvas then evolved into what we know it as now.

Waxed Canvas was adopted in clothing for outdoor use and made popular by mainly two companies: J.Barbour & Sons, and Belstaff respectively creating outdoor and motorcycling clothing.

The use of waxed cotton declined in the 1950s with the arrival of breathable synthetic fibers like nylon and then more technical fabrics like GoreTex.