Founder & Director of JT Aphrique / African Clothing Store – Joyce Tetteh
Our Story
African Clothing Store was founded in the UK by Joyce Tetteh. Originally from Accra in Ghana, Joyce Tetteh was inspired whilst on a trip to her homeland after visiting a shop selling African print clothing. Joyce’s vision was to create a shop selling African clothing with lots of variety to a wider audience, making these products available throughout Europe. In 2010, African Clothing Store (JT Aphrique Ltd.) was born, in the UK, with a simple aim to showcase the heritage, beauty, and diversity of African designs, through African-inspired clothing.
We specialise in elegant, authentic, custom made African clothing produced in Africa and the UK from high-quality African fabric. Our clothing collection and designs reflect a blend of various fashion trends, traditional and modern African wear to bring out the culture.
With a constant demand for outfits that are fresh and new, creativity is key in order to create that perfect piece. Our clothing collections include everyday wear such as work wear, tops, skirts, dresses, trousers, dashiki, jumpsuits, suits, headwraps, sarongs, kaftans, kimonos and bikinis. Our clothing also includes elegant or formal occasion wear such as suits, embroidered shirts and statement dresses. Our African clothing is for everyone!
African Clothing Store uses high quality African fabric and produces a wide range of custom made clothing designs. We thrive ourselves on our intricate stitching and detailed African embroidery. We use versatile fabric so our products are versatile and can be worn by anyone, made into anything, and worn for any occasion. From a traditional look, to a more modern look with an African twist, we aim to cater for everyone, children, teens, women, men, couples, families, and bridal parties. We also offer our bespoke tailor made service for special occasions such as weddings and formal events.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Over the years, we have collaborated with various designers. We have participated in a number of events such as a celebration of “Black Awareness” month and appeared in and hosted fashion shows to promote cultural diversity and inclusivity. Wherever possible, we also offer work experience opportunities for local apprentices and students in further education.
Ghanaian Fashion
Ghanaian fashion is well known for its beautiful vibrant colours and broad and diverse style. With fashion dating back to precolonial times, this West African country is home to some of the best styles in Africa.
The Ghanaian fashion industry began to take off in the early 2000’s. The marketing and production of African prints on the catwalk increased awareness, opening it up globally. Today, African print garments can be found in many wardrobes.
Our Custom Made African Clothing
Custom made African Clothing is our speciality and we offer a personalised service for you. African Clothing Store creates custom made clothing for men, women, teenagers & children. Our collections include occasion wear, work wear, business wear, smart/casual wear and everyday casual wear.
Our Bespoke Tailor Made Service
For special occasions such as weddings, we can provide our bespoke Tailor-Made service to suit your requirements. We can help you create the perfect outfits for you and your family / guests, whether it is traditional or modern in style. Please see a wedding party example from our website.
We have tailors with years of experience in creating the following outfits:-
Bride / Groom / Mother and Father of Bride/Groom / Bridesmaids / Ushers / Page Boys / Flower Girls
We can also tailor outfits for other special occasions: –
Birthdays / Anniversaries /Christenings / Baptism / Confirmations / Funerals / Eid / Waleemah / Church Choirs / Sunday Best / Graduations / Proms
Fitting Day Package
If you wish to make your fitting day more special with family or friends, we would be happy to personalise a package to suit your requirements. Please contact us or call us on 01438-211744 for a quote based on your requirements.
Refund Terms and Conditions
We offer a 100% money back guarantee if you are not happy with your purchase and we have provided the material/fabric.
If you provide your own material/fabric, unfortunately, we can only offer a 5% refund if you are not happy with the finished product.
Please always check your measurements before ordering. To assist you, here is our measurement guide.
Please also see our size guide to assist you.
If you have any queries, or you are not sure about your measurements, please call us on 01438-211744 and we may be able to arrange a video call to discuss further.
Please refer to our Custom Made Terms & Conditions for more information.
Contact us
Unit 41
The Mall
Luton
Bedfordshire
LU1 2LJ
Next to Body Shop
Tel: +44 (1438) 211 744
Email: [email protected]
GLOSSARY
Commonly known as Kitenge and Ankara fabric, this double sided print fabric is vibrant and 100% Cotton cloth which is regularly used to make clothing and accessories in Africa. The method used to produce this fabric is called batik, an ancient art form originating from Indonesia using a wax resist dyeing technique.
Ankara
Ankara is a versatile fabric which can be combined with plain fabrics to create many garments.
Batik is a dyeing method used mostly on cotton. Patterned areas of fabric are covered with wax which prevents parts of the fabric from being dyed. Multi-coloured and blended effects are produced by repeating the dyeing method several times. The original pattern of wax is removed by boiling and another design is applied before repeating the re-dyeing process.
Holland Wax Print
A special, wax-print fabric with one to two core colours printed within the design. This is made with very soft, durable cotton.
This means woven cloth in Akan. It is called Kente or “Nwentoma” and is made from interwoven strips of silk and cotton fabric. Kente derives from the word Kenten, meaning basket. Kente cloth differs in pattern, colour and design with each pattern having their own specific meaning.
Nigerian George Lace
This lace is famous for its gold embroidery, intricate hand-sewn beads, sequins and gold lace.
Nigerian Tulle French Lace
This lace is often used to make clothing for weddings and special occasions. It is intricately sewn and is embellished with hand sewn beads and sequins.
Polished Cotton
Polished cotton is a woven cotton fabric with a shiny, smooth surface. The sheen results from a process known as calendaring whereby the fabric is pressed between cylinders during manufacturing, or from the weave itself. Polished cotton can differ in shine dependent on whether they are treated with a resin or glaze during the process.
Corporate Responsibility
JT Aphrique strongly believe in conducting our business with transparency and we value ethical trade and fair treatment of our workers. We promote African culture through our products and provide sustainable work for local artisans and small production units in West Africa, some of which rely solely on our income. We are committed to creating job opportunities for locals within their community to help improve their lifestyle. As such, we encourage our tailors and suppliers based in Ghana, to choose their own pricing for fabric to encourage fair trading.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]