Ellen Witt has her hands full - literally - if you catch her in her home jewelry studio. She's bound to have fists full of trinkets, tchachkas, chains and stones. Yes, this entrepreneurial native Atlantan, and founder of MarcellinaG vintage jewelry, is proud of her new line, and grateful for the business partnership with her sister Marci Cohen, and mother Regina Witt.
The name says it all for the family's influence in Witt's choice of branding and logo - the first part of the company name is for Marci, the middle is for Ellen, and the ending "inaG" is part of Regina's name. So Ellen laughed, "You have to recycle an " 'e' to spell my whole name," and Cohen chimed in, "but it's all about recycling, that's kind of what we do."
The three ladies have found a way, under the artistic and creative eye of Ellen, to recycle and reuse old jewelry, pendants, charms, earrings and pins as part of various lines of new creations. MarcellinaG specializes in one-of-a-kind necklaces and earrings from estate sales, vintage shops, and things just about anyone can find in the bottom of an old jewelry box. But not just anyone has the ability and the eye to create the pieces MarcellinaG offers. "Ellen has the eye for it," said Cohen.
Ellen said her first multi-charm necklace pendant was made on a whim.
"My mom asked me to clean out my childhood closet," she said. She found a plethora of charms and trinkets that she wanted to keep.
"I put them all on a chain and wore it home," she said. That was about a year ago.
Ever since she put those charms together, she said she began getting compliments from people she did and didn't know. It didn't matter if she was out and about, or hanging out and shopping at high-end stores in Phipps Plaza. She said it was a store manager at Phipps who took a look at her creation and really urged her to start making more jewelry pieces, and to start selling them. She turned to her mother and sister and together they started MarcellinaG.
Cohen said her role in the business is "the voice of reason." As the marketing and communications manager on the business end, she is able to help Witt streamline her product for customers. With a background in big box retail business experience and work ethic, Cohen said her English degree and communications skills go a long way. She said she's the one to make sure everything is thought through before any major decisions are made.
Ellen said her personal line is always, "Let's do it!" and Cohen is the one who balances with reason.
Regina, Ellen's mother, said she enjoys going to shows and shopping for the elements that will eventually become one of their new pieces. "It's so fun," she said.
While each has a strong dedication to the company, Regina said her title is project engineer. "Anything that really needs to get done, I do it," she said. Whether that means last minute packaging in the neat metal tins, or putting earrings on backing boards and putting them in the pink custom MarcellinaG bags - Regina is always there to lend a hand.
MarcellinaG is about more than fun, whimsy and neat jewelry finds - it is also about story telling. Witt said she likes to collect as much information as possible about the pieces she finds. Sometimes it means visiting the home of a man off-loading several pieces of jewelry he collected as "vintage" to turn around 20 years later to sell to Witt, or just finding pieces from artists and collectors around the world.
Cohen said, "Part of the collections is including the stories."
The story of the man selling his collection held a great deal of excitement for Witt. She said, "It was like it was vintage, on top of vintage."
Inspiration for Ellen is very spontaneous. "It's life, the things around me - for me it's the same way people decide how they are going to dress," she said.
Regina said, "She knows what she does and doesn't like," and on the heels of that Cohen said, "It doesn't necessarily follow fashion."
Witt just has a great eye and an even better attitude.
"I just kind of do things, the way I do them," she said.
The pieces by MarcellinaG range in price from $80 to $250 for the necklaces, and $35 to $65 for the earrings. Most of the chains are either sterling silver, gold fill or plated. The charms, beads and other findings range from Monopoly play pieces to semi-precious pendants, or plastic mahjongg tiles. The possibilities are endless, and with several collections including the Tick Tock watch and timepiece collection, to the Hardware and Artisan collection, no two pieces are identical. That is part of the fun and excitement of browsing their lines and getting a unique piece to pass down. It already holds a hidden legacy, with a story included, and a "new" piece can then make a new story of its own as the years pass.
MarcellinaG is available at Jac at 245 N. Highland Ave. #120, Atlanta; and in Arlington, Va., at South Moon Under. Also visit www.marcellinag.com where you will find more information on ordering or placing custom-piece requests.
