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Up & Comers: Beautiful Designs Help Preserve Culture
Celebrating women between 25-35. Stephanie Jolluck turns a love of South America into a business while preserving a culture and contributing economically to the region.
by Mary Welch
October 1, 2006
S
urrounded by art and antiques her entire life, it was natural that Stephanie Jolluck
would become the founder and owner of Coleccion Luna, a company dedicated to the Guatemalan trade
and tradition of textiles.
Jolluck grew up in Atlanta in a home filled with art, unusual antiques and a passion for discovering hidden South American treasures. Her parents owned an antique import business that allowed her to appreciate and see first-hand different ways of life in different cultures. Thus when it came time for college, she pursued a degree in both Latin American literature and anthropology.
Upon graduation, Jolluck headed to Mexico and her parents assisted her financially in exchange for visiting art and antique markets looking for Mexican treasures to send back to the family business.
She now travels at least six times a year to Chichicastenango, Santiago de Atitlan and Panajachel in Guatemala to work directly with the Indians on her clothing designs. She selects the fabrics, sketches her own designs and works directly with the residents. Every Coleccion Luna product is handmade from recycled and vintage fabric, known as “Huipiles.” Huipiles,” or old blouses, are woven fabrics once worn by the Mayan women, making each Coleccion Luna product a true piece of history from the Mayan culture.
Jolluck's designs, best described as “Bohemian Chic,” include purses, pillows, table-runners, throws, bedding and woodcarvings that range in price from $12 and up. Sold in more than 200 stores nationally, they are available locally at the Sage Boutiques in Buckhead and Midtown, as well as on her Web site at www.coloccionluna.com. Jolluck donates a percentage of her company's annual proceeds to the villages and families in Guatemala she works with to create Coleccion Luna designs.
