My name is Thumeka Nyilika. I work in Hout Bay. I am a mother of three children girl and two boys.

I fell in love with sewing as a tool to empower myself. As a mother of four children I felt it was important to equip myself with a household skill which will enable me to improve my financial situation. I started off buying and selling clothes and many customers often asked if I could make clothes and sometimes do alterations for them. So I took sewing lessons to improve me skill set.

I was taught, and am still under the mentorship of a well known fashion lecturer Mr Zola Booi who offers private lessons for women in the townships. He taught me all that I know and I will be forever grateful for the skills he has taught me his unending support and encouragement. I have learnt from the best!

My ultimate favourite fabric is a fabric called Shwe-Shwe which is also known as Da gama or 3 cats.
The fabric is deeply rooted in our culture as Amaxhosa and I specialise in traditional clothing. The fabric is soft in texture and of great quality. Manufactured locally and highly celebrated within my target market.

My favourite design so far, has to be the double interfaced dress with orange detail in the Hood.
It is a rare design as I decided to challenge my self and to think out of the box. It is my favorite design because many people loved the design which gave me the confidence I needed to empower myself in the field and now I can take on any challenge with the help of my Mentor of course who is always willing to guide me.

I love sewing for women. Women’s fashion is extremely diverse and ever so changing. Designing for women keeps me on my feet. I design for mostly middle-aged women, and I get to play around with my favourite fabric.

For all you design or alterations you can get hold of me on my cellphone 063 588 2485