Single Mom From Maboneng Uses Sneaker Painting Business She Started With R500 Savings to Put Food on the Table

• One loving mother residing in Maboneng is working hard to support her two sons, nephew and mother, and uses her creative talents to paint sneakers
• Thobile Ntuli started her business called Luthi Creatives in 2018 with only R500 savings after leaving the film industry
• The 41-year-old is a self-taught artist and can paint beautiful designs on many different surfaces, including denim bags, shirts and hats

One single mother from Maboneng in Johannesburg is using her creative talents to ensure that her family is well taken care of and started a business where she paints beautiful designs on sneakers.

Thobile Ntuli only had R500 to start her enterprise called Luthi Creatives in 2018, but quickly realised that she found her passion.

Read also

"I took a leap of faith": Talented beautician opens up about passion for craft

Briefly News previously wrote about the woman impressing social media peeps with her creative skills.

Now, talking to Briefly News, the mother-of-two explains that she is a self-taught artist who started her business after deciding to leave the film industry where she worked as an assistant director:

“I was a freelancer, and my financial responsibilities were too much for me to work and stop while looking for the next gig. When I left, I had no idea what was next. I thought about returning to teaching, but it wasn’t my first option.

“I then saw an article about artist Dr Esther Mahlangu and [decided to] teach myself to paint sneakers for brides and grooms because I realised that they would be wearing traditional attire with plain sneakers.”

Read also

"Wowza": Strong female bodybuilder leaves many in awe with magnificent muscles

The 41-year-old notes that she uses her sneaker business to showcase various rich and colourful African cultures.

Let’s take a peek at some of her work found on the Luthi Creatives Instagram page:

Thobile, who holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Zululand, says that it takes her six hours to paint on canvas material and 20 hours on leather:

“My process on canvas material is easy; I sketch, paint and seal. With leather, I have to prep the material by cleaning it with alcohol-based liquid, sketch, paint, wait for it to dry, add another coat until the colours look solid, then seal.”

The skilful woman can paint on a wide variety of surfaces and on different clothing items, including denim, t-shirts, shirts, hats, shoes and much more.

Thobile has experienced great losses in her life

The entrepreneur lost her brother in 2020 after he fell ill with tuberculosis. She then stepped in to support his son, Langalibalele Khanyisani, who is only six years old.

Read also

Young mom teary-eyed with gratitude as she drives off to job she prayed hard for

Thobile also experienced the pain of losing her second-born son, Melusi, who would be 17 this year, from illness, with her two other sons, Msindisi and Melokuhle, 21 and 14:

“My son, Melo is also autistic, and I need to fork out a lot of cash to pay for the school he attends.”

But despite the personal challenges the go-getter faces, she is determined to make a success of her enterprise and has big plans for her business:

“I would love to see my business having employees and maybe having classes where I teach young kids how to do what I’m doing.”

The loving parent has helpful advice for women who want to become entrepreneurs within the field in which she operates:

“Do things at your own pace. You are your only competition. Nothing comes easy or fast, so it’s easier to have patience and trust the process. Keep your work and the presentation thereof clean.”

Read also

Talented mom creates biz making beautiful artworks from bottles after losing job

Durban woman grinds hard with crochet business making bags & clothes: “I want to build my single mom a house”

In another inspiring story by Briefly News, a creative lady residing in Durban does the most with her small business and crochets beautiful jerseys, bags, skirts and more.

After being unemployed for a long time, Nangamso Bana decided to take matters into her own hands and started a creative hustle. Now, the young entrepreneur grinds hard and hopes to build her momma a house after her business has grown.

Source: Briefly News