Anya Ayoung-Chee is a Trinidadian host, fashion designer, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She was Miss Universe Trinidad and Tobago 2008 and was a contestant in the Miss Universe 2008 pageant. She was the winner of Project Runways ninth season in 2011. She founded the fashion lines Anya de Rouge and Pilar and the online fashion retailer cANYAval.
Following her success as Miss Universe Trinidad & Tobago, Ayoung-Chee went on to host a number of Caribbean television and web-based shows, including her own fashion show, Make It Yours.
Ayoung-Chee had been involved in philanthropy since 2003, when she became a member of the TallMan Foundation. The foundation was established by her family for the empowerment of young people in underprivileged areas. Following her Miss Trinidad & Tobago title, she became more involved in charitable work. In 2008 the United Nations Association of Trinidad & Tobago (UNATT) asked Ayoung-Chee and Gabrielle Walcott to be spokeswomen and champions for the group. They both served during their reigns as Miss T&T, and continue as members of UNATT, the NGO arm of the United Nations which aims to advocate for the United Nations and the Millennium Development Goals.
Ayoung-Chee had experience creating designs, but her tailoring had been done by others. Despite learning to sew only four months before auditioning for the program, she placed in the top three of most of the challenges, and eventually won the competition on October 27, 2011. Ayoung-Chee earned $100,000 from L'Oreal Paris to begin her own women's line, Pilar—named after her deceased brother. She also was featured in a fashion spread in Marie Claire and received a $50,000 technology suite by Hewlett-Packard and Intel with which to design and sell merchandise, as well as a partnership with Piperlime.com. She was also voted the fan favorite in a Twitter contest, for which she received another $10,000.
Ayoung-Chee continued to design for Pilar and also founded a lingerie line, Anya de Rouge. In 2014 she appeared on reality show Under the Gunn, working with Tim Gunn to mentor other designers.
She has hosted events and produced fashion for Trinidad's carnival, and has founded online store cANYAval, where she works with other designers creating clothing inspired by Trinidad's carnival. The store focuses on Monday Wear, or elaborate bathing suits worn on the day before carnival Tuesday. She is also a travel ambassador for Trinidad and Tobago.
In 2019, Ayoung-Chee competed in Season 7 of Project Runway All Stars, that featured a cast of previous winners. She placed 10th overall.
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