Elysia Guillén

I’ve always been drawn to the beautifully unusual. As a child, I’d spend hours digging through racks of old clothing and searching for treasures at “la segunda” (literally, “the second,” or secondhand store) with my grandmother. She’d tell me I had a “thrift eye” and that someday I should put that gift to good use.

La Segunda Estudio was one of those unexpected blessings born out of the pandemic. In the summer of 2020, I found myself furloughed from my hospitality job—without work for the first time since I was sixteen. With time to reflect, I returned to a childhood dream: to curate vintage pieces and create meaningful work rooted in culture and storytelling.

Today, La Segunda Estudio is a creative studio focused on vintage curation, content creation, and intentional community-building. My work is inspired by the cultural traditions, textiles, iconography, and music of Mexico’s diverse Indigenous communities, as well as the stories I encounter through travel. Whether I’m wandering a mercado in Coyoacán or exploring quiet corners of the Central Coast, I’m always seeking pieces and moments that feel soulful, rooted, and full of life.

Through my work, I hope to encourage more thoughtful consumption and remind people that new isn’t always better. Pre-loved pieces carry history, heart, and soul—and choosing them is a quiet act of resistance against mass consumption and in favor of something slower, more intentional, and more connected.

 

COMMUNITY • CULTURE • SUSTAINABILITY

Mujeres Makers Market

While women of color own a significant and growing share of women-owned businesses, we continue to face systemic barriers in entrepreneurship. I'm deeply committed to uplifting and amplifying female-presenting BIPOC business owners and entrepreneurs. That commitment came to life in 2020 when I collaborated with a group of inspiring Latinx women to launch Mujeres Makers Market, a project born from the need to foster community, creativity, and unity among women-led brands.

Mujeres Makers Market Website

 

 

Mujeres Makers Market

While women of color own a significant and growing share of women-owned businesses, we continue to face systemic barriers in entrepreneurship. I'm deeply committed to uplifting and amplifying female-presenting BIPOC business owners and entrepreneurs. That commitment came to life in 2020 when I collaborated with a group of inspiring Latinx women to launch Mujeres Makers Market, a project born from the need to foster community, creativity, and unity among women-led brands.

Mujeres Makers Market Website