Detroit City Football Club now has its own line of jewelry thanks to Rebel Nell

Chandra Fleming, Detroit Free Press
·3 min read

A company famous for scraping layers of paint at automotive plants or using seat cushions from the old home of the Pistons and polishing them up for unique jewelry is launching yet a new venture that's all about Detroit.

Rebel Nell, is a jewelry manufacturing company that employs women who are facing or who have overcome hardship. The company refurbishes old material from companies, sport teams and historic landmarks and turns it into jewelry, hair accessories or artwork.

Now Rebel Nell is now partnering with Detroit City Football Club to create unique pieces of jewelry from a mural that was created by fans at Keyworth Stadium in Hamtramck.

Rebel Nell founder Amy Peterson poses with a display of jewelry and other items that were created in a partnership with the Detroit City Football Club at her store on Holden Street in Detroit Monday, Aug. 22, 2022. Rebel Nell is a unique Detroit-based jewelry company that utilizes found flecks of graffiti to create one-of-a-kind pieces. The company's mission has created a path for underserved women to find employment and empowerment. Currently the company has partnered with the Detroit City Football Club to create jewelry and other pieces representing a mural that was created by fans.

"We exist to provide employment equitable opportunity and wraparound support for women with barriers," said Rebel Nell CEO Amy Peterson. "And we specialize in making one-of-a-kind items from repurposed material."

The company is located near Henry Ford Health's ArtBlock, which provides a collaborative workspace for nonprofits and other organizations. Rebel Nell fits right in, sharing space with the York Project, a sustainable fashion brand.

Rebel Nell is big on creating pieces from scraps, whether it's an old Pistons jersey or pieces of graffiti from the Dequindre Cut. To make pendants, a punch tool is used to cut out the pieces of art they would like to use in pendants for necklaces or accessories.

Rebel Nell founder Amy Peterson holds a piece of vinyl from the Detroit City Football Club stadium that will be used to make jewelry at their store on Holden Street in Detroit Monday, Aug. 22, 2022. Rebel Nell is a unique Detroit-based jewelry company that utilizes found flecks of graffiti to create one-of-a-kind pieces. The company's mission has created a path for underserved women to find employment and empowerment. Currently the company has partnered with the Detroit City Football Club to create jewelry and other pieces representing a mural that was created by fans.

For the DCFC collection, Rebel Nell used a plain wood board and covered it with a black vinyl backdrop. They gave fans a prompt and asked them to answer the question: "What does DCFC mean to you?"

Fans used paintbrushes, pens or whatever utensils they could find to express how they feel about the team. Rebel Nell then gave them a grand surprise by removing parts of the vinyl backdrop that revealed the letters "DCFC." The mural now stands at the stadium with the letters and still features some of the affirmations.

Workers then took the pieces of vinyl they tore off from the mural and used the punching method to create the pendants, which were then created into jewelry, accessories and gift items.

Rebel Nell founder Amy Peterson shows a pin created in a partnership with the Detroit City Football Club at her store on Holden Street in Detroit Monday, Aug. 22, 2022. Rebel Nell is a unique Detroit-based jewelry company that utilizes found flecks of graffiti to create one-of-a-kind pieces. The company's mission has created a path for underserved women to find employment and empowerment. Currently the company has partnered with the Detroit City Football Club to create and sell jewelry and other pieces representing a mural that was created by fans.

The mural was completed during the 2021 season.

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“We are proud of the DCFC Collection and our ability to incorporate the fans and their love and support of this amazing team into the creation of the pieces," said Peterson in a written statement.

The collaboration includes dog tags, bracelets, necklaces, earrings and lapel pins. Some pieces include the team's colors, which are hues of dark, deep red plus a dash of mustard yellow.

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Some pendants also include the fleur-de-lis, which is the team logo. Pieces start at $35 and can be purchased at theRebel Nell online store or at Rebel Nell retail stores at Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi or at 1314 Holden St. in Detroit.

A portion of the funds will be given to the Detroit Youth Soccer League.

Detroit City Football Club was created in 2012 with the motto of "Passion for Our City, Passion for the Game," which evokes the three ideas upon which the club was founded: satisfying the demand for soccer in Detroit, representing the city in a positive light, and building community through "the beautiful game."

Rebel Nell has done collaborations with the former Joe Louis Arena, Belle Isle, the Packard Plant, Detroit Piston and other historic places in the city.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Rebel Nell, Detroit City Football Club team up for jewelry items